More than 1 million mobile phones in China has been attacked by a virus “Zombie”, according to Chinese state media, CCTV and Xinhua.
This virus is called “Zombie” because it can transmit from phone to phone, like in the movies, zombie bite that turns humans into walking dead.
Viruses attached to the security application, which then transmits the user’s SIM card details to a server that is controlled by a small group of hackers. The hackers will send a message or make a phone call that contains links to a virus-ridden games and software, CCTV said.
Recipients who click on (follow) the link will find their phone is infected, while at the same time providing “click through” to the link itself, which is usually translated into payments to parties who publish the link.
CCTV said that the fault may lie in an intermediary distributor rather than the game or software developers who actually appear in the ad.
Zhou Yonglin, an official with the Emergency Coordination Center National Network, said that “in the first week of September, nearly 1 million phones in the country were infected with the virus.”
And although the telecommunications provider said it had taken steps to reduce the number of infected messages, Shihong Zou, a telecommunications expert at Beijing University of Post and Telecommunications, told CCTV that the virus may begin to send a message updating a little more, making it difficult for the user to see any suspicious activity.
Qimiao Chengdu, the company behind the original security application that is infected, said that they had nothing to do with the virus, and added that it is difficult for users to be notified about applications that are infected and are safe.
