It will seem very ironic to be true. Online pornography is spreading a virus to thousands of phones of those who visit some sites or download their apps, with consequences that can be very annoying and expensive.
According to a new report by the cybersecurity firm ESET, applications that claim to be from Pornhub are infecting mobile devices with malware that blocks users from their phones and demands a ransom for their release.
Because the Google Play Store prohibits Pornhub from having an official application in the database, that is, it does not allow pornographic material to appear on its software distribution platform, some people who have such inclinations are trying to find controversial material in other places. But in their attempt to satisfy their desires, they are being deceived, downloading applications that may resemble the ones they are looking for, but which are in fact much more dangerous than a simple addiction. The result is that users are discovering that they became ransomware victims.
As reported, when you download one of these applications, the first thing that happens is that the user must give him access to his phone so that this app runs a scan and "make sure it has no viruses", before being able to play illegal videos. But instead of checking the device, it's actually installing a virus. Once malware is comfortably infiltrated in the phone through one of these dishonest applications, a ransomware is installed that locks the user out of his phone, and asks him to pay hundreds of dollars in Bitcoin to free him.
ESET has published a series of instructions to help phone owners avoid this type of malware, and has also provided instructions on how to get rid of the virus if it has already fallen as one of its victims. For example, the device can be put in Safe Mode, which blocks third-party applications. In the event that administrator privileges have been granted by mistake to the false application, the user will have to revoke that access before removing it, to ensure that all its components have been deleted.
If all else fails, a complete reset can be done, although the only way to make sure that does not happen is to completely avoid any Internet site or application that is related to questionable or illegal videos or images. For more information about malware and what to do about it, you can read the full ESET report (in English) on its official website.
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