Malware Disguised As Legitimate Android Apps

Uploaded on 2023-05-09 in FREE TO VIEW, BUSINESS-Services-IT & Telecoms, TECHNOLOGY--Hackers

Researchers at Check Point Software have spotted a concerning new malware strain, dubbed FluHorse. The malware operates via a set of malicious Android applications, each of which mimics a popular and legitimate app with over 100,000 installs.

These malicious apps are designed to extract sensitive information, including user credentials and Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) codes which are widely used to secure sensitive online services and corporate resources. This typically requires the user to provide two different types of information to authenticate their identity to prove they are who they say they are before access is granted.

FluHorse targets multiple sectors in Eastern Asia and is typically distributed via email. In some cases, high-profile entities such as governmental officials were targeted at the initial stages of the phishing email attack. FluHorse is experiencing a major increase in cyber attacks, in the first quarter of 2023, the average organisation in the APAC region was attacked 1,835 times per week - a 16% increase over the first quarter of 2022.

One of FluHorse’s most worrying aspects is its ability to remain undetected for extended periods of time, making it a persistent and dangerous threat that is difficult to identify.

In their research, Check Point describe the different attacks, and provides examples of the phishing malicious applications, compared to the original, legitimate mimicked android apps, showing how difficult it may be to spot the differences.

Mimicked Applications

Cyber criminals often opt for popular apps with a high number of downloads to maximise the impact of their attack and gain greater traction. The attackers chose an eclectic selection of targeted sectors for specific countries, using one mimicked application in each country, including Tawian (Road Tolls and Vietnam (banking). Attackers have devised mimicked applications from reputable companies because they are confident that such applications will attract financially stable customers. This is because the companies behind these applications have a reputation for trustworthiness.

Luring Victims To Download Mimicked Apps

Phishing emails are one of the most common cyber threats that an organization and individuals may face. Phishing attacks can be used to accomplish a variety of goals for an attacker including stealing user credentials, data, and money, as well as delivering malware to a recipient’s computer or luring the victim to download a file. Check Point discovered multiple high-profile entities among the recipients of these specific emails in this attack, including employees of the government sector and large industrial companies.

How To Identify A Spoofed Email

Spoofed emails are part of phishing campaigns, which are designed to trick the recipient into taking some action that helps the attacker. If an email has an embedded link to click, an attachment, or requests some other action, then it is wise to check it for spoofing. In some cases, the attacker may use a real, lookalike address. In others, the value of the 'From' header may be replaced with a legitimate address that is not under the sender’s control.

While the first case can usually be detected by taking a careful look at the sender’s email address, the second are more tricky and require greater caution. Spoofed 'From' addresses can be identified based on:

Context: Phishing emails are designed to look legitimate, but they may not always succeed. If an email doesn’t sound like it came from the alleged sender, it may be a spoofed phishing email.

Reply-To: A Reply-To address enables replies to an email from one address to be directed to another. While this has legitimate uses (such as mass email campaigns), it is unusual and should be cause for suspicion for emails coming from a personal account.

Received: The 'Received' header in an email indicates the IP addresses and domain names of the computers and email servers along the path that the email traveled. An email from and to email addresses within the same company should only pass through the company’s email server.

Check Point advises businesses and individuals in the affected regions to remain vigilant and take steps to protect themselves against this sophisticated and potentially devastating new malware. Their full technical analysis can be found HERE

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