THERE are millions of apps and it can be hard to tell the safe ones apart from the dodgy.
Sadly, it’s a reality of our times that hackers will succeed in duping some of us into downloading dubious apps.
They may look innocent on the surface but underneath can hide all sorts of viruses and malware.
Hackers use them to do things like breaking into your devices and stealing passwords or online banking credentials.
And hackers are always trying new tricks.
We recently heard about one sneaky new way fraudsters had come up with to prevent millions of victims on Android from removing their virus-filled apps.
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They were all on the Google Play Store until experts exposed them.
So what should you look out for when downloading an app to prevent yourself becoming their next victim?
Adrianus Warmenhoven, a cybersecurity expert at NordVPN, shares some useful tips.
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Check reviews
You’ll see feedback about apps further down the page which can be very useful.
“It sounds obvious but users police the apps they use all the time and aren’t shy about warning others when they find problems,” Warmenhoven explains.
How many downloads has it had?
Claims of huge numbers when the app is brand new can be a bit of a red flag too.
“There have been cases where the download figures have been manipulated by fraudsters so you should definitely smell a rat if an app is claiming millions of downloads yet has only been released for a few days,” the expert reveals.
See the permissions
Developers have to detail in the Google Play Store description what sort of things it needs access to on your phone to work.
If there are any odd permissions it needs, that could be a bad sign.
“Be wary if an app asks for permissions it doesn’t need,” Warmenhoven warns.
“No flashlight app needs to know your location.”
He adds: “For extra protection use a virtual private network so all of your phone and computer’s internet traffic is encrypted and secure.”
Do your research
The Google Play Store app description will also say who has made the app.
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Is it a name you know and trust?
You can click the name and it’ll show you any other apps they’ve made – have a look at those and see if there have been any complaints in the reviews on them.
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