Meta Says Identified Over 400 Malicious Apps Stealing Account Info

WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 07th October, 2022) Tech company Meta (banned in Russia as an extremist organization) identified over 400 malicious smartphone applications designed to steal account login information, the company's Facebook division said on Friday.

"We identified more than 400 malicious Android and iOS apps this year that target people across the internet to steal their Facebook login information," Facebook said in a statement.

The malicious apps are disguised as genuine programs, including photo editors, mobile games and fitness trackers, the statement said. Developers of the malicious apps may publish fake reviews to increase their legitimacy or cover up negative reviews that attempt to expose their true nature, the statement also said.

Facebook reported the findings to both Apple and Google, who run the two major application stores for smartphones, the statement added.

The apps prompt users to login with Facebook account details to access their features, in turn stealing their sensitive user information, the statement said.

Users should be suspicious of apps that require a Facebook login to access their features, as well as apps that do not provide the promised features after logging in, according to the statement.

People who believe their information may have been compromised should reset passwords, enable two-factor authentication and enable log-in alerts for their account, the statement said.