Mobile Banking Malware On The Rise, 50% Hike In Attacks! WhatsApp a Dependable Medium?

According to studies, with an increase of 50% malware attacks have known no bounds in the past year. Most common of all happen to be malware that steals users’ financial data and bank funds.

The banking malware is on the rise in India. According to several sources, over 35% of organizations and institutions in India have been affected by such attacks in 2019 alone.

Among the most common types of malware that India often faces, that steal photographs and contact details from the phone, Adware is a big name as it generates ads on your phone to make money for some other party.

Another variant that isn’t all that trendy in India is a malware that kicks off surveillance on the target’s phone, tracks its GPS location and snips their personal data. What’s more, they could even control your microphone and other mobile phone operations.

What makes banking malware scary is its ability to steal data while the target’s on their phone making payments. Unaware of any malicious activity, the user would have let some cyber-con know all their bank credentials.

WhatsApp is becoming an accessory in the procedures of banking malware. Despite the hefty encryption that’s done on the chat app, hackers keep finding creative ways to exploit even the most minute of vulnerabilities.

In a recent zero-vulnerability case, the malware which was on the video-file message got transmitted as it is onto the receiver’s device.

To make sure that you don’t get malware installed on your device via WhatsApp, keep cleaning all the data and do not open any doubtful files and links.

Phishing attacks are among other common tactics of hackers to attack users and their devices. Suspicious emails, if opened could help the hackers kick off malware in the mailbox and then the attack goes in a way that takes the target to a website and asks them to fill in their personal information.

Downloading apps from third-party stores and straight from the internet is a strict no! Do not open any suspicious files and treat each link and file with equal distrust. If you’re not sure who the sender is, do not consider the file at all, be it on text message or on email.

Connecting to unauthorized or unknown Wi-Fi networks could also pose security issues. With the tag of free networks to lure you in, “man-in-the-middle” attacks could easily be launched.

Mobile phone security is as paramount as the security of your house or any other electronic device. There has got to be a set of security measures in place to work if anything goes south.