“Squid Game”
This is how cyber criminals use the hype surrounding the series
“Squid Game” is a huge success for the streaming service Netflix.
© Noh Juhan / Netflix
The Netflix series “Squid Game” is on everyone’s lips. Cyber criminals also want to take advantage of the hype.
At the moment there is probably no more popular series than “Squid Game”. 456 candidates compete in deadly games in the Netflix production in order to win prize money in an unbelievable amount. The macabre series between drama, thriller and survival is a huge success for the streaming service. Cyber criminals also want to exploit this hype.
Lukas Stefanko, Senior Malware Researcher at Eset, a manufacturer of security software, recently spoke about an unofficial Wallaper app for “Squid Game” on Google Play informs about which a variant of the Joker malware was distributed. Joker can read different data and register victims, for example, with paid services. When asked by the news agency spot on news, Stefanko explains why criminals rely on “Squid Game”, how the situation could develop and what users should pay attention to.
Scammers watch out for trends
“Cyber criminals have a particular eye on current trends in popular series, films, video games or even special events. They know exactly what is happening and use the numerous search queries by users to spread their malicious apps,” explains the security expert . The game “Fortnite”, the social network “Clubhouse” or Covid-19 were therefore used in the past to distribute malware via unofficial apps.
The fact that the criminals “are very successful with this is shown by the download numbers in the corresponding app stores, which quickly reach five or six-digit numbers”. For the fraudsters this is “financially extremely lucrative”. The already mentioned “Squid Game” app will therefore probably not be the last around the series to trick users.
“We are currently seeing over 200 different apps related to ‘Squid Game’ on Google Play alone,” explains Stefanko. In the case of third-party providers, “the number is many times higher”. Even “serious app developers want to profit financially from the current hype. Here it is extremely difficult to separate the wheat from the chaff.” Eset expects, for example, “that apps will appear soon that have a second season of ‘Squid Game’ as a background and want to entice users to download it”.
Caution is advised
The aforementioned wallpaper app is no longer available in the official store. “We assume that there will be several free riders who bring malware onto devices with dangerous apps, steal sensitive data or want to enrich themselves with in-app sales. However, Google Play’s detection routines filter out malicious applications very quickly “says Stefanko. Nevertheless, users should be careful. The specialist advises you to be careful before downloading.
Fans should “take a very careful look at which app they are downloading. Often, testimonials from other users help here. The requested permissions for the applications on the device are also an important indicator. A simple wallpaper app does not require access to the contact list or other sensitive areas the smartphone. ” Users can check which functions or data an app wants to access on both Android and iOS devices.
In the settings of an Android smartphone, users will find the sub-item “Apps” or “Apps & notifications”. The applications installed on the device are listed here. After tapping on the corresponding app and then on “Permissions”, users can see what a program wants to access. For iOS devices, users can find the apps and their authorizations under “Settings” and “Data protection”.