Android Worm That Spreads Through Text Messages Hits US: Think Before You Click on a Link

Mobile phones are at threat from a new Android worm called the "Selfmite.b". Many users may be unaware of threats to their mobile phones from unknown quarters. The Selfmite.b spreads by texting every contact on the users list. This unsuspecting worm gets into mobile phones through text messages. When a user receives links from friends that looks strange, yet they go ahead and click on them. The Selfmite.b spreads unsuspectingly from one hand set to the other.

A research was conducted by a Dublin security firm AdaptiveMobile. The Selfmite.b is similar to the SMS worm Selfmite that was found in June this year. The new worm tricks users into clicking on bogus links that install malicious software on the mobile phone. Around 100 devices from 16 countries including China, India, Russia, United States and Canada have been infected with this malware.

A security analyst at AdaptiveMobile stated in a blog post that according to their data, Selfmite.b is responsible for sending over 150k messages during the past 10 days from a bit more than 100 infected devices. To put it into perspective that is over a hundred times more traffic generated by Selfmite.b compared to Selfmite.a.

Selfmite.a is the first version of the worm that sends messages to the first 20 contacts on the users list. The Selfmite.b is more aggressive than the previous version. Once an Android phone is infected, it sends messages to the list of contacts on the phone with an URL. When a user clicks on the link, it will lead to a website that will download Selfmite.b on to the phone. This worm can even sign up for expensive online subscriptions leading to high texting bills from wireless carriers for mass spam texts.

The Selfmite.b requires users to click on the link and then manually install the APK file. As Android phones have an option to allow installation from unknown sources other than Google Play, the worm totally relies on users to install it manually. The easiest way to avoid this is to stay away from clicking on unknown links received in text messages. If a user has already contracted the Selfmite.b installing, a good anti-virus will get rid of the worm.