Despite giving users an improved degree of control over the way an application accesses data on their devices, Android is still being exploited by many applications. Most of these applications have nothing to do with the type of permissions they request.
Recently, a research team from VPNpro has labeled a Chinese Developer’s applications as ‘Spyware’ for their shady permission systems. According to the researchers, the developer has a total of 50 million installs, and all its apps request “dangerous permissions.”
The developer, dubbed Hangzhou-based QuVideo Inc., along with its subsidiaries, has rolled out several applications on the Google Play Store. Surprisingly, each one of them has passed the scrutiny every app has to go through before being allowed on the platform. The VPNpro researchers have also detailed that one of their apps also has a malicious remote access trojan hidden within it.
The developer is best known for its video editing app, i.e., VivaVideo. This application offers free services and has 100 million installs at the time of writing. The application had already been listed as ‘malicious-ware’ in 2017.
These applications are also available on the App Store. However, due to the lack of freedom in the permissions systems of iOS, users have not been exploited. Hence, make sure you check all the permissions the app requires at the time of installation. Don’t give unnecessary permissions, or better, uninstall the app if it prompts for permissions that are not required.
