Google Takes Down 80+ Fake Apps

A few months ago, we reported on a series of iPhone apps that had been created as fronts for advertising malware. Well, it happened again, only this time to Google. Last week, Google removed 85 apps from Google Play after discovering that they were pushing aggressive, full-screen ads to Android users. While ads during apps isn’t new or illegal (you know that since you play the free version of WWF or Fortnite), this is different.

Malicious adware bombards users with ads, making money for its makers but annoying the heck out of users, and ultimately damaging the brands that are unsuspectingly pushing ads to these platforms. The guys at Trend Microspotted the deviant apps, (like Easy Universal TV Remote, which was downloaded more than 5 million times), and reported the activity to Google who promptly removed them. It’s a good idea to use an antivirus application on your device and before you download anything, always check for anything suspicious and read the reviews. Note to self.