Unfortunately, once again, our certainty is confirmed that the internet is not a safe place at all. There’s a new malware for Android phones out there that got improved, and we all should consider it. It carries the name ‘BRATA,’ (Brazilian Remote Access Tool Android), and it’s capable of stealing money via a device and resetting it to factory settings, according to Gizmodo.com.
The malicious software in question has been through some changes, and they’re not in favor of the public at all. At first, the malware was found in Brazil a few years ago, and it later spread to other parts of the globe. Researchers from security firm Cleafy are raising the alarm about the improved potential of the malware to take over Android phones.
BRATA can monitor your bank account
BRATA is capable of many cunning things once it installs on a victim’s phone. It can track via GPS, take advantage of multiple communication channels such as TCP and HTTP, and even use keylogging techniques and VNC to permanently monitor the bank app.
The researchers wrote on their website:
Like other leading Android banking trojans, BRATA has its own custom methods to monitor bank accounts and other victims’ actions performed on its mobile device. Through BRATA, TAs will obtain Accessibility Service permissions during the installation phases to observe the activity performed by the victim and/or use the VNC module to retrieve private information shown in the device’s screen (e.g bank account balance, transaction history, etc.).
Surfing across the dangerous places of the web unprotected by powerful antivirus software is cybersuicide. Telling for sure what antivirus is the best is impossible, but it’s sure worth trying several of them to see which one suits your needs best. Since unpaid software doesn’t usually grant enough protection, paying a few bucks per month is indeed worth it.