“Selfmite” Beware Android Users!! Here is a Text Messaging Malware

“Selfie” – The most trending word nowadays in this technology led world. But it’s time to jump out of the selfie world and look into the “Selfmite“. 😉 Nope this is not another amusement creature, this is the latest trending Android malware. What’s interesting about this malware is it’s propagating nature. “TEXT MESSAGES”… ohh yeah…that’s true Text Messages.

According to AdaptiveMobile, a security vendor, the new SMS worm is able to propagate itself to target other Android users through special links embedded within text messages

That worm app propagates by automatically sending text messages to 20 contacts in the infected phone’s address book. Next, the worm requests users to install a legitimate app via an advertising platform. Every time the app is installed the worm’s author gets paid.

Logically, most malware for Android can be considered as Trojan apps. But normally, those do not come with self-propagation mechanisms to be distributed through non-official app downloading stores. In general, SMS worms in Android are also rare.

Find IT, before you get IT: AdaptiveMobile reports, Selfmite spreads by sending users the following SMS, which contains a URL that redirects to the malware:

‘Dear [NAME], Look the Self-time, http://goo.gl/%5BREDACTED%5D’. If a user clicks on the goo.gl shortened link, he is invited to download and install an APK file that appears as an icon on his smartphone menu after installation is complete.

Additionally, Selfmite also attempts to convince affected users to download and then install another file called mobogenie_122141003.apk using a local browser. You might realize that Mobogenie is a legal app that enables users to synchronize Android devices with users’ PCs. They can then download apps through an alternative app store.

“At the moment North America seems to be the most targeted territory,” said Denis Maslennikov, a Security Analyst at AdaptiveMobile. The worm was first discovered in the U.S. , but AdaptiveMobile reports activity from other countries around the world.