The Indian government’s central cybersecurity agency, Cert-In, recently warned about the SOVA Android Trojan targeting banking users in India. The banking Trojan steals usernames and passwords via keylogging, steals cookies, and adds fake overlays to a number of apps to trick users. SOVA used to focus on countries like the US, Russia and Spain, but in July 2022 it added several other countries, including India, to its target list. Latest version of this malware hides in bogus Android apps which are displayed with logo of popular apps like Chrome, Amazon and others to trick users into installing. This malware collects banking details including usernames and passwords when users log into banking apps and hack their accounts. The government has shared a list of dos and don’ts that can help Android smartphone users to protect themselves from this dangerous banking malware.
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Download apps only from the Google Play Store
Only ever download apps from official app stores such as your device manufacturer’s or operating system’s app store. This reduces your risk of downloading potentially malicious apps by up to 90%. Never check the “Untrusted Sources” box to install/sideload APK apps.
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Always check the “Additional Information” section.
Before downloading/installing apps on your Android devices (even from Google Play Store), always read the details of the app, including the number of downloads, user ratings, comments and the “Additional Information” section.
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Check what permissions the downloaded app is asking for
Always review app permissions and only grant those permissions that have relevant context for the app to function.
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Don’t miss Android security patches/updates
Make sure you don’t miss Android updates and patches as they become available from Android device vendors. Do not navigate untrustworthy websites or follow untrustworthy links and be careful when clicking on the link contained in unsolicited emails and SMS.
Look for suspicious numbers
Be on the lookout for suspicious numbers that don’t look like real cell phone numbers. Scammers often hide their identities by using email-to-text services to avoid revealing their actual phone number.
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Do you know if the text message from the bank is real?
Genuine SMS messages received from banks usually contain a Sender ID (consisting of the bank’s short name) instead of a phone number in the Sender Information field. Do extensive research before clicking the link provided in the message. There are many websites that allow anyone to do a search based on a phone number and see all relatable information about whether a number is legit or not.
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Be careful what you click on in email, text or on Google
Be sure to click a URL. Be it in SMS, e-mail or on Google. Click URLs that uniquely identify the website domain. When in doubt, users can search the organization’s website directly using search engines to ensure that the websites they are visiting are legitimate.
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Beware of these URL shorteners
Be careful with shortened URLs, e.g. B. with bit.ly and tinyurl. In its recommendation, the government asks users to hover over the shortened URLs (if possible) to see the full website domain they are visiting, or to use a URL checker that allows the user to enter short url and display full url. Also, users are encouraged to use the preview feature of the shortening service to preview the full URL.
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Check encryption certificates
Before entering sensitive information such as personal information or account credentials, verify that the encryption certificate is valid by looking for the green lock in the browser’s address bar.
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Report unusual activity to your bank
Bank customers are advised to immediately report any unusual activity on their account to the respective banks with the relevant details in order to take further appropriate action.
