Android Adware Tied to Undeletable Malware

Researchers have found more than a dozen critical files associated with preinstalled adware on Android devices that carry loaders, Trojans, and other malware on top of their annoying "legitimate" payload.

Igor Golovin and Anton Kivva, researchers at Kaspersky, began looking into Android adware after seeing numerous complaints from customers about intrusive ads. They found that many adware campaigns had installed code in firmware, or into the system partition — both locations in which most Android anti-malware software can't look.

In addition to the cloaked nature of the malware's location, the researchers found that many of these pieces of adware had altered system-critical libraries or software components: If anti-malware software did find them and try to delete them, it would render the device inoperable.

Golovin and Kivva note that the Lezok and Triada Trojans are the most common types of malware found, and that these are most commonly found on less expensive Android devices.

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