In October, the National Police and the Cyber Police warned Ukrainians about new ways to steal access to a smartphone. Both schemes start with an ad and a promise of something useful.
Scheme one: an ad, a website and a Telegram bot
According to the National Police (a report of 10 October), a person clicks an ad, lands on a website, and from there is directed to a Telegram bot, where they are asked to download a file. After installation, the program asks for permissions, and with them the criminals can control the smartphone remotely.
Through this, fraudsters can see SMS, contacts, notifications and on-screen data, intercept typed characters and gain access to banking apps.
Scheme two: the “free offline navigator”
The Cyber Police warned (15 October) that ads for free navigators that supposedly work without internet are circulating on social networks. Instead of a map, a malicious file may land on the device. The program asks for permission to install from unknown sources.
How not to fall into the trap
- Do not download files from links in ads and messengers.
- Do not enable installation from unknown sources.
- For navigation, use proven apps from official stores.
- Do not grant a program permissions it clearly does not need.
What to do if you installed a suspicious file
Turn off the internet, call your bank and block your cards, delete the program, change passwords from another device and report it to the police.
