Alien versus Predator? No, this Android spyware works together

The Android Predator spyware has more surveillance capabilities than previously suspected, according to analysis by Cisco Talos, with an assist from non-profit Citizen Lab in Canada. Predator and its loader Alien have been around since at least 2019, and are part of a larger suite developed by Cytrox, now called Intellexa. The …

[J. R. Hartley]

The title is no longer required.

Lovely stuff.

[Kurgan]

Meanwhile we cannot record our own phone calls

Does this mean I have to install state-sponsored malware to be able to record my own phone calls again?

"We disabled call recording for your own good", says Google. LOL.

[Furious Reg reader John]

Re: Meanwhile we cannot record our own phone calls

Luckily for you, this is not state sponsored, so you can buy your own licence for these commercial tools.

[Pascal Monett]

"zero user interaction to infect victims' devices"

And to think that some people are actively trying to get us to transform said device into our universal passkey.

Ain't that reassuring ?

[Claptrap314]

Google has crossed over another line

It is becoming increasingly clear to me that Google's unquenchable thirst for our personal data as reached the point that they are now actively undermining security.

For crying out loud, I had to log back in to Gmail (corporate decision) this morning. I was in a hurry, so I did not see the automatically checked "remember this device" BS that turns off MFA.

Just *$#*@ no.

[ChipsforBreakfast]

Time for REAL security.

We can start with a good old fashioned physical off switch, or better yet a removable battery just like the old days. Then you can be sure that off means off.

Likewise, physical indicators for high-risk functions such as cameras & mic's - not LCD icons, real physical indicators that light up when a device is powered on, not under software control.

Those two things alone would be enough to limit the potential of a phone as a real-time surveillance device and neither compromises either functionality or usability.

Beyond that, we need vendors to start taking user privacy & security seriously. We can't prevent malware but we can limit the harm it can cause and make such harm far easier to reverse. It should be almost impossible for persistent malware to survive in a closed environment such as a mobile phone, that it's not is entirely the fault of the mobile OS's and the companies behind them, something that only serious market pressure will ever change.

[Claptrap314]

Re: Time for REAL security.

We had one--look up Research In Motion.

Shut down their retail unit more than a decade ago.

[Phil Koenig]

Re: Time for REAL security.

RIM - which changed their name to BlackBerry about 10 yrs ago - was still selling (Android) phones up until 2-3 years ago.

Nowadays they are mostly doing enterprise mobile management tools and their QNX realtime embedded OS which among other things has been commonly used for car infotainment systems and various commercial/industrial things.

They might have survived in the mobile market longer with their own OS platform if it weren't for them repeatedly shooting themselves in the foot.