A couple weeks ago we reported on a link that if you send it to an iPhone user it will make their phone crash instantly. This week it’s Android users who need to be very careful what links they open on their phones.
Once again, hackers are doing nefarious things in order to mess with people smartphones, but rather than brick your Android phone, this time they can gain full control of it from a link that is being spread around in a text message.
That means that not only will they be able to erase your phone, rendering it a worthless hunk of metal and plastic, they potentially will also have access to your online banking records.
Reports Metro…
The text message says, “You have received a multimedia message from +[country code] [sender number] Follow the link http:www.mmsforyou [.] Net /mms.apk to view the message.”
The application installs the application Tor and then sends an automated text message to a number in Iran saying, ‘Thank you’.
Security experts Heimdal were the ones that discovered this hack and gave out this warning, “Attackers can open a backdoor into Android smartphones, to monitor and control them as they please, read SMS messages, which means they can also read authentication codes sent as part of two-factor authentication mechanisms, used also by online banking apps and ecommerce websites, and use their full access to Android phones to basically manipulate the device to do whatever they want.”
Heimdal goes on to say that, especially for Android phone users, “NEVER click on links in SMS or MMS messages on your phone.”
In addition to the damage the hackers can do your phone as mentioned above they can also use this text message link to send SMS and make calls using your very own phone.
Sure, you might REALLY want to see what those messages say, and they could be harmless, but hey, better safe than sorry, right? Or in this case, REALLY sorry.
[Metro]
Photo: George Dolgikh / Shutterstock.com