Some activists are turning to the use of malware to make their political points, noted Symantec researcher Kevin Haley.
Infosecurity.Com - Two recent incidents illustrate this new trend of using malware to make political statements, Haley, who is director of Symantec Security Response, told Infosecurity.
The first malware incident happened in March this year when activists used a bogus Android application to send a message about pirated software. The trojan was installed on a version of the Android “Walk and Text” application, which cost $1.50 from the Android marketplace. The legitimate application turns on the phone’s camera while the person is writing a text message, so that the person could see where he or she is walking while typing the message.
A version of the application with a trojan was made available on warez sites, where applications can be downloaded for free. “When they downloaded this particular version, a text message was sent to all their contacts implying that they had stolen software. It is something of a new development in the Android mobile phone space, where these trojans are being used, not to steal anything, but to shame people”, observed Haley.
The second malware incident, which occurred this month, involved the dog-fighting game application called “Dog Wars” for Android phones. More
