Mobile malware developers seemed to have a pretty busy 2022; they doubled the number of banking trojans in the cybercrime landscape - revealed Kaspersky’s Mobile Threats in 2022 report. The report, furthermore, provides an analysis of the trends and patterns of mobile malware, and the potential risks to mobile devices and their users.

Some stats your way

2022 saw the emergence of almost 200,000 new mobile banking trojans, a 100% increase from the previous year, and represents the largest upswing in mobile malware development observed in the last six years.
  • The firm detected 1.6 million mobile malware installers. Despite the surge in malware creation, this actually represents a decline in threat activity, as the number of installers detected was lower than the figures for 2021 (3.5 million) and 2020 (5.7 million).
  • RiskTool-type potentially unwanted software accounted for the most distributions at 27.39%, followed by adware at 24.05% and trojan-type malware at 15.56%.
  • China was the most affected by mobile malware at 17.70%, followed by Syria (15.61%) and Iran (14.53%).

Why this matters

The significant increase in banking trojan development indicates that cybercriminals are focusing more on stealing financial data from mobile users and investing in creating new malware. 
  • Although cybercriminal activity remained steady in 2022 after a decline in 2021, threat actors have continued to work on enhancing malware functionality and spreading vectors.
  • In addition to the above, Legitimate channels, including official marketplaces and ads in popular apps, are increasingly becoming a means for the spread of both scam apps and dangerous mobile banking malware.

Latest mobile malware threats

  • Threat actors had created over 50 fake and malicious apps impersonating ChatGPT. These apps spread various malware, including spyware, adware, and a Spynote strain.
  • In February, Godfather banking trojan samples were found mimicking Google Protect apps and targeting organizations in the U.S., the U.K., France, Germany, Turkey, and Spain.

The bottom line

Mobile devices are increasingly targeted by cybercriminals due to their widespread use, rich data storage, and increasing reliance on mobile devices for work and personal use. Malware attacks on mobile devices are becoming more sophisticated and diverse. Hence, it is recommended that you follow basic smartphone cyber hygiene and avoid downloading apps from untrusted or third-party sources.
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