Hackers now target smartphone apps, say cyber experts at Cocon

The cybersecurity conference organised by Kerala Police will also discuss Artificial Intelligence and Virtual Reality Technology
Hackers now target smartphone apps, say cyber experts at Cocon

KOCHI: With a major chunk of business moving from web-based platforms to Android and iOS-based applications, hackers have expanded their Area of Operation (AOP) to a new level. According to cybersecurity experts, hackers are now spending more time hacking android and iOS applications to decode data with the help of apps.

“If earlier web platforms were used for all sorts of business, now it has shifted to mobile-based applications. While comparing the mobile-based application, only a small portion of business is taking place through the web-based system. This might have forced hackers to shift their AOP to mobile applications. Since data is money, their main aim is to loot it and sell it to companies that require it,” Abhishek J M, a cybersecurity expert, told Express on the sidelines of a workshop held as part of Cocon 2019.

According to experts, hackers mainly use the fake application to decode information from mobiles. “Sometimes, some gaming applications ask for permission to read your contacts. But for the gaming apps, the contacts are not necessary. If we allow them to access it, the application decodes all the information on the mobile.  Even some of them can wipe out the phone memory completely. It is always advisable to install apps downloaded from Play Store,” said Anirudh Anand, another cybersecurity expert.

Anand also said that banking apps were safe and it would be vulnerable when the user installed other ‘fake’ apps. “Almost all the payment apps are designed in a manner to defend against hackers. Hacker will only get the freedom to loot our data once we allow access to some fake apps. Updating the mobile phone also helps to resist hacking,” said Anand.

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