Malware alert for Android users, Judy infects 36.5 million users

The spread of the malware campaign Judy on Google Play may affected between 8.5 and 36.5 million users.

A malware called ‘Judy’ is infecting millions of Android smartphones across the world -- close on the heels of ‘WannaCry’ holding computers at ransom, says a report.

According to security solutions firm Check Point, the malware -- Judy -- uses infected devices to generate large amounts of fraudulent clicks on advertisements, generating revenues for the perpetrators behind it.

The total spread of the malware campaign on Google Play (Google’s official app store) may have reached between 8.5 and 36.5 million users, Check Point said on its blog.

The auto-clicking adware (Judy) was found on 41 apps developed by a Korean company. However, it wasn’t clear which countries have been impacted by the Judy malware.

“Some of the apps (that were infected) we discovered resided on Google Play for several years, but all were recently updated. It is unclear how long the malicious code existed inside the apps, hence the actual spread of the malware remains unknown,” it added.

After Check Point notified Google about this threat, the apps were swiftly removed from the Play store, the blog said.

Earlier this month, a ransomware called WannaCry wrecked havoc across over 100 countries, hitting systems in countries, including Russia and the UK.

The malware infected computers running on older versions of Microsoft operating systems like XP, locking access to files on the computer.

While the government maintains that there were few just a few stray incidents in India, various reports by security solutions companies said the Asian country was amongst the worst hit nations by Wannacry.