Shoppers Warned Over Fake ‘Amazon Black Friday Deals’ App - It’s A Virus

Cybercriminals regularly target shoppers every festive season - and this year, the attacks are even more hi-tech.

A fake Amazon ‘Black Friday Deals’ app, offered on a fake page built to resemble Amazon’s site is actually malware - a form of computer virus built to steal personal details.

The Android malware was found by security experts Zscaler - and claimed to offer access to Black Friday deals.

But when the Android app is installed, it downloads another, invisible app which steals the user’s personal information and transmits it to computers controlled by criminals.

Zscaler said, ‘While consumers eagerly await the chance to buy this season’s hottest gifts, what they don’t realise is that hackers are also anticipating a holiday treat: their personal data.

‘The app was masked as an Amazon.com Black Friday deals app, but actually intended to collect victim’s personal data.

‘The malware authors are using cyber squatting to fool the victim and portraying itself as a legitimate Amazon site.

‘Once this malicious app is installed on the victim’s phone, the fake Amazon application will start giving the error message: ‘Device not supported with App’.

‘Always install applications from legitimate app stores and websites. Be aware of the permissions asked by the application during installation. Shopping apps should not be asking for access to your contacts or SMS. Keeping an eye on the permissions used by the app can save you from installing such fake apps.’