Updated Android Malware Can Take Over Your Phone

A customized variant of Android malware is now worming its way
onto nonrooted devices and taking them over, and the weapon
requires no interaction from the victim to begin its campaign.

Researchers at the
mobile security firm Lookout identified the reworked
malware as Legacy Native (LeNa), which poses as a legitimate app
to gain unauthorized privileges on Android phones.

LeNa has long plagued Android users, Lookout said, but in its
reworked form, it no longer requires its target phone to be
rooted, and can now activate its payload — it connects to remote
servers, transmits sensitive
phone information and drops more rigged software onto
the phone — without any complicity from the end user.

The new Android malware disguises itself in fully functional
copies of apps, including "Angry Birds Space," and hides its
malicious payload in the string of code at the end of an
otherwise genuine JPEG file, Lookout said. Related article: Also click here for more.This rogue code
exploits the
GingerBreak vulnerability, a flaw that enables it to gain
control of the phone and trick the victim into purchasing apps
from illegitimate app stores.

The risks of downloading LeNa are not currently high; it has not
been found in the Google Play market (formerly the Android App
Market), and has only been spotted in unauthorized, third-party
Chinese-language app markets.

Before you download any app, check the permissions it
requests; if you're uncomfortable with the amount of access to
your phone an app wants, don't download it Click here to read more.Review the app, its
developer and its ratings and customer reviews HTC One X+.Check for unusual
behaviors on your phone that may indicate its been infected, and
scan your phone bill for any unauthorized texts and charges.