UPDATE:

It’s not uncommon for children to have their own cell phones, or for parents to let their kids download an app on their phones. But that app could be hiding more than most parents think – pornographic ads targeted at young children – popping up on a game. Seby Bell, owner of Computer Chick in Beckley and a mother, says her son came across one of these ads.

“I have seen him download games that look harmless and they turn out to not be, ” Seby Bell, Owner of Computer Chick, said.

More than 60 games on the Google Play Store have been found to have these kinds of ads. And Bell says she sees Malware like this on many of her customers’ phones, and it doesn’t just affect Android phones.

“Fairly frequently, I get people come in with either type of device and usually what they end up asking me to do is wipe everything out and restart, ” Bell added. 

The McQueen Car racing game is one of the many apps affected by the AdultSwine malware. According to CNN, some other applications affected by the malware are Subway Banana Run Surf, Paw Puppy Run Subway Surf, and Draw X-men to name a few.

“What I ultimately recommend for people if the parental control apps do not work for them is to keep buying restrictions turned on so that you have to enter a password every time and the other thing is to monitor closely, ” Bell told us. 

And Google recommends Android users only download apps from known developers to be sure your kids are safe.

ORIGINAL:

Google has removed from its Google Play Store more than 60 gaming apps, many seemingly targeted at kids, that contained malware that showed pornographic ads.

According to CNN, researchers from security firm Check Point discovered the malware, called AdultSwine, in apps that have been downloaded more than 3 million times, according to a report released Friday.

The gaming apps include titles such as Mcqueen Car Racing Game, Subway Banana Run Surf, and Paw Puppy Run Subway Surf.

An individual or group of hackers created these malicious games under fake publisher names to distribute their malware and make money off the scheme, Check Point researcher Daniel Padon told CNN Tech.

Once downloaded, the malicious apps displayed “highly pornographic” pop-up advertisements in a new web page, and attempted to scare users into installing fake security apps. It also intended to get users to buy worthless premium services, the researchers found.

According to Check Point, Google removed the malicious apps hours after they were notified of the issue.

“We’ve removed the apps from Play, disabled the developers’ accounts, and will continue to show strong warnings to anyone that has installed them,” a Google spokesperson told CNN Tech. “We appreciate Check Point’s work to help keep users safe.”

One user said in a comment on the Google Play Store that his son saw pornographic content on one of the apps, according to Check Point’s findings.

The malware was not found in apps that are a part of Google’s “Designed for Families” program. Google staffers manually review apps designed for children. Apps made primarily for kids under 13 must participate in this program, according to the company’s website.

Google said the malicious advertisements did not come from its ad network.

Despite Google’s security precautions, malicious apps can find their way into the Google Play Store. Check Point found 303 malicious apps in the Play Store last year.

Android users should make sure they download apps from known developers and parents of young users are urged to download apps from Google’s family program. Padon also suggested checking apps’ reviews before downloading. But some malware authors create fake reviews to make their apps seem legitimate.

List of Android app displaying malware
(Source: Check Point)