MobiDash
In this day and epoch, it is surprising how many mobile phone users are not concerned with the safety of their devices at all. In 2018 a report by Statista revealed that 52.2% of all Internet traffic is generated via mobile devices. The Android OS holds over 76% of the Mobile OS market share, which means that cybercriminals are much more likely to build malware that targets Android, rather than any other mobile OS as the number of people who would be exposed to their threat would be much larger. However, some shady individuals build non-threatening software, which can still be very irritating, that targets Android users. One such application is the MobiDash adware. The purpose of this application is to spam the user with ads and pop-ups.
Table of Contents
Spreads Via Fake Applications
The propagation method of adware is usually via a bogus variant of a popular application. Such copies of legitimate software are to be found on official stores like the Google Play Store rarely. Instead, they tend to lurk on third-party websites where there are little to no security checks for the applications offered. Sometimes such sites can mimic legitimate ones and trick users into downloading the fake applications they host.
Uses the Popularity of the Hit Application FaceApp
Recently, the FaceApp application made the news as millions of users found its features entertaining and the results they get worth sharing with their friends and family on social media. This application is used to take photos of one’s face and then apply various filters to them with the most popular one being the aging filter. Celebrities such as the Jonas Brothers, Cardi B, Kevin Hart, and Drake have taken the so-called ‘FaceApp Challenge’ and have posted photos of themselves using the aging filter of the app and have gathered millions of likes. Creators of adware have seen the booming popularity of the FaceApp application and decided to take advantage of it by tailoring a fake copy of it that would also install the MobiDash payload on the user’s device. This adware will give itself administrative privileges so that getting rid of it will be far more difficult. To stay under the radar of the user, the MobiDash adware will then masquerade as a copy of the Settings menu.
Bombards You with Advertisements
When these steps are completed, the MobiDash adware will begin launching advertisements in the Web browser the person is using, in the notification bar, and even in other applications, which are being used. There is also the danger that adware like the MobiDash tends to promote low-quality products and services.
If you want to wipe off the MobiDash adware from your Android device, you should download and install a legitimate cybersecurity application, which will keep your system safe in the future too. Be very wary when downloading new applications and make sure the source is safe.
