India’s Ministry of Home Affairs has issued an alert about malicious apps disguised as adult-content platforms that are being promoted via social media ads, risking phone security and financial theft.
India’s Ministry of Home Affairs has warned Android users about a scam campaign that uses fake adult-content apps to infect phones and enable financial fraud. The alert, issued by the National Cybercrime Threat Analytics Unit under the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre, says the apps are being pushed through advertisements on Facebook and Instagram and then routed to phishing sites before victims are asked to download files outside the Google Play Store.
Officials named several of the suspected apps, including Night Play, Reloop, Kyss, Vimo, Rivo, Nexo and Vixa. According to the advisory, the sites linked from the ads mostly use “.live” web addresses, a pattern that investigators say is being used to lure users into installing malicious APK files.
Once installed, the software can ask for Accessibility permissions, a powerful Android setting that can let an app observe activity on the screen, mimic taps and enter sensitive information. The government said that capability could be used to capture one-time passwords and PINs, carry out unauthorised transactions and, in some versions, install a VPN to route traffic through attacker-controlled servers. The malware may also make itself harder to remove.
The ministry urged users to install apps only through the Google Play Store or other trusted marketplaces, to avoid APK files from adverts or unfamiliar websites, and to refuse Accessibility access to apps they do not know. It also advised keeping Google Play Protect enabled, installing updates promptly and checking bank and UPI accounts regularly. If a malicious app will not uninstall normally, the advisory recommends using Safe Mode before trying again, with a factory reset as a last resort.
Disclaimer: This article is intended to inform and educate, not to recommend or endorse any financial product, investment or strategy. Please consider your own financial circumstances and seek professional advice where appropriate before making financial decisions.
