Beware! Pre-installed Malware Found On These 38 Android Devices

Recently, the security company Checkpoint has revealed that it has discovered the presence of severe malware and ransomware that was preinstalled on multiple devices from two large companies.



Beware! Pre-installed Malware Found On These 38 Android Devices

In the segment of mobile devices, Android is apparently the main target of hackers. Recently, Checkpoint revealed that it has discovered the presence of malware that was preinstalled on multiple devices from two large companies.

So, let’s find out which were the devices where malware was found.

Malware is today one of the biggest plagues in the technological world. Despite all the validation and verification mechanisms of product quality, the truth is that there are smartphones that hit the market with pre-installed malware. The discovery was made by the security company Check Point and reportedly malware is not part of the official ROM but has been installed along the device distribution chain.


Even more curious was the fact that there are 6 cases where the malware was installed directly in the ROM, with system privileges, which means that in those cases, the firmware must be reinstalled in the device.

From the malware discovered, highlight the popular Loki and Slocker. Slocker is a ransomware that uses AES encryption algorithm to encrypt all files on the device and then demand a ransom. Slocker uses Tor for communications with the C & C server (acronym for “Command & Control”).

But, which devices were infected?

According to the investigation, malware was found on the following devices:-

Galaxy Note 2
LG G4
Galaxy S7
Galaxy S4
Galaxy Note 4
Galaxy Note 5
Galaxy Note 8
Xiaomi Mi 4i
Galaxy A5
ZTE x500
Galaxy Note 3
Galaxy Note Edge
Galaxy Tab S2
Galaxy Tab 2
Oppo N3
Vivo X6 plus
Nexus 5
Nexus 5X
Asus Zenfone 2
LenovoS90
OppoR7 plus
Xiaomi Redmi
Lenovo A850
It is also known that these devices were at the service of two large companies: one in the area of telecommunications and another multinational in the area of technology.


This is not the first time that malware pre-installed on Android devices is discovered, which is very worrying. This means that distribution processes are vulnerable, which is unacceptable at this level.