A hidden virus attacks Android: remove these apps now

Millions of people have been infected by the HiddenAds “auto-start” Android malware through apps that have been infected and are very complicated or impossible to detect. You won’t even know that you have them, so pay attention to the list in case you have installed one on your mobile.

McAfee has discovered these infected apps in the Play Store, consisting of a new strain of malware capable of launching itself after downloading them. This makes them even more dangerous. You could have some on your mobile without realizing it.

A hidden virus attacks Android: remove these apps now

How they work and can affect you on your mobile

The problem is that if you have one of these malware-laden apps, you won’t notice it since it runs in the background and hides from its victims. It is not detectable, and worst of all, unlike other apps that need to be opened first, these apps with HiddenAds start running malicious services automatically after installation.

Another problem with these apps is that they display full-screen and very intrusive ads on your smartphone without being able to be removed after being installed. This may be a sign that helps you know that you have an app of this type on your mobile.

Once they had sneaked into the Play Store, they used Facebook to promote themselves, creating their own pages for each of the apps to attract new victims. There may be more applications not yet detected at present, but we are going to comment on the ones that have been discovered recently.

Be careful because if you have one of them, you must eliminate it as soon as possible to prevent it from affecting your mobile. Therefore, in addition to telling you how they act and how they have been detected, we are going to tell you what they are. If you have them, do not hesitate to get rid of them as soon as possible. Go to the settings of your phone, in manage applications, look for it and say goodbye by giving it delete.

These are the 13 apps with malware

Most of the applications that have this new malware are disguised as apps that eliminate junk files or help optimize the battery life of your mobile. And they do the opposite, so be careful with this type of application and check what you install before doing it. It is worth checking if you have Play Protect activated and have a good antivirus.

The apps that have been detected by the HiddenAds malware are these:

  1. Junk Cleaner
  2. Easy Cleaner
  3. powerdoctor
  4. super clean
  5. Full Clean-Clean Cache
  6. Fingertip Cleaner
  7. Quick Cleaner
  8. Keep Clean
  9. Windy Clean
  10. Carpet Clean
  11. Cool Clean
  12. Strong Clean
  13. Meteor Clean

malware android mcafee

All of them have a large number of victims because the least downloaded one has more than 100 thousand downloads and many of them were downloaded by more than a million people. One of the dangers of these applications is that they managed to circumvent Google’s defenses and ended up in the app store despite containing malware. However, McAfee has discovered them and they have all been removed from the app store. If you have one on your phone, even if it can’t be downloaded anymore, you’ll have to delete it as soon as possible.

Remember that you are affected even if you have never opened or used it, and this is one of its greatest dangers compared to other malicious apps, and you will not even notice it because they will change its icon to another known one so that it is not detected. Have you seen any of this list on your phone? Delete it already!