Beware! Fake Pokemon Go on Google Play locks screen, clicks porn ads

Pokemon Go has become a mega-viral ‘issue’.

Pokemon Go has become a mega-viral ‘issue’. Though the game is addictive, it has been a talk of the town for many issues, good and bad. Ever since the game was released, in just three countries, the entire world seems to want to get their hands on the Pokemon Go. People from other parts of the world where the game is not yet officially launched, are trying their level best to get their hands on the app.

Several websites have been saving the Pokemon Go app as an apk file and distributing it. This app can be directly downloaded and installed without using the official Google Play Store. Bypassing the Play Store and installing the app manually on Android can be easily done without tweaking any settings or the operating system. However, this could result in a huge security issue on an Android smartphone.

To install Pokemon Go on Android—check this link.

iPhone users would need to jailbreak their devices to install the app, but many users either don’t know how to jailbreak their phones. Jailbreaking an iPhone will also void all warranty on the device. However, to officially install Pokemon Go on an iPhone in a country where the game is not available is fairly simple and needs no jailbreaking. To know the procedure on how to get the game, check the link below.

To install Pokemon Go on iPhone—check this link.

Downloading the APK file from a third-party website could be a huge concern. The apk files for Android could be altered or tweaked and injected with a virus or malware. This viral app could then cause damage to your smartphone and/or send out your personal data to a hacker, putting your privacy at risk.

Though this is a problem with apps downloaded from other websites, a new report mentions that there are several fake applications on the official Google Play store which are also malware-infected.

Since Pokemon Go is presently a game that everyone around the world wants to play, obtaining it is difficult since it is yet to launch on other courtiers. Presently, US, UK, New Zealand, Germany and Australia are the only countries that have received the official game.

A report stating that there is a fake app of the Pokemon Go game that is available on Google Play. Users are tricked into thinking that the app is the official one. Once you download the game, the app is reported to freeze or lock the screen of the smartphone, preventing the user from interacting with it. After locking the screen, the app reportedly starts clicking on random porn advertisements from pornographic websites, in the background. This malware-infected fake app is designed by hackers and scamsters that help them make money from ads being clicked on. The ads could also take the user to malware-injecting websites and infect the smartphone heavily causing data and privacy loss. Only rebooting the phone would help stop the app from running.

The report comes from well-known security research and antivirus firm ESET. The firm states that almost 500 to 1,000 users were already tricked into installing the fake app and are not infected with a malware. Restarting the phone to stop the app from executing does not help in many cases since the app is bound to start automatically after the phone restarts again.

ESET also pointed out that besides the fake Pokemon Go app, the found two more apps that are malware-infected. The apps are related to the Pokemon Go game and are named as ‘Guide and Cheats for Pokemon Go’ and ‘Install Pokemon Go’. Users are advised to stay away from any app that does not come from an official source. We also advise them to wait for the official launch in their country.