New Android Malware Turns Your Mobile Devices into Hidden Proxies

Cyber criminals distributing new Android malware via Phishing email campaign that turns infected smartphones into hidden mobile proxies.

This malicious app installing a fake voice-message app and turns it as a network proxies without users knowledge.

This Malware named as TimpDoor that act as a backdoor with stealthy access to the home and corporate network and the dropped payload is fully encrypted.

Once the malware successfully installed, a background service starts a Socks proxy that redirects all network traffic from a third-party server via an encrypted connection using secure shell Tunnel.

Also this malware evade the security futures such as firewalls and monitoring tool to access internal network.

TimpDoor malware activities identified  since March and researchers found the  26 malicious APK files in August and it affected atleast 5000 victims.

Infection Process

Initial stage of infection starts from active phishing campaign via SMS along with 2 voice massages and trick user to click on it to hear the audio.

Once victims click the link then it redirect to fake website that contains a download button and ask them to install app.

Also this fake website contain details instruction about how to install this app and trick user to enable the unknown sources to install this malicious if it blocked by default.

Once the victims successfully moved further steps and clicks on “Download Voice App,” then the file VoiceApp.apk is downloaded from a remote server.

After the installation it  displays the main fake interface to listen to the “messages” also that contains a fake Icons such as  Recents, Saved, and Archive which is not properly functioning.

Once the victims try to play the audio file, it will suddenly closes the app, the icon is hidden from the home screen to make it difficult to remove and the malicious service will start running in the backround without user knowledge.

Soon after the service starts, Malware begins to gathering the system information such as device ID, brand, model, OS version, mobile carrier, connection type, and public/local IP address.

According to McAfee research, Once the device information is collected, TimpDoor starts a secure shell (SSH) connection to the control server to get the assigned remote port by sending the device ID. This port will be later used for remote port forwarding with the compromised device acting as a local Socks proxy server.

TimpDoor is the latest example of Android malware that turns devices into mobile backdoors—potentially allowing cybercriminals encrypted access to internal networks, which represents a great risk to companies and their systems. Researchers said.

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