Delete these Apps

MOBILE, Ala. (WALA) -Delete these apps now. Android users getting a stern directive to check their phones. At issue, apps that secretly sign you up for paid subscriptions.

The new type of malware called Fleckpe is being disguised as 11 legitimate apps. Apple devices aren’t affected.

The apps are mostly related to photo and video editing, with names including Photo Effect Editor and Beauty Slimming Photo Editor.

According to reports, cybersecurity firm Kaspersky found the apps in the Google Play Store complete with snazzy designs and logos. The applications in question have since been removed but not before being installed on more than 620,000 devices around the world!

Once downloaded, security experts say, each app secretly installs a payload that is able to open a paid subscription page in an ‘invisible’ web browser. The Trojan opens the page in this browser and attempts to subscribe on the user’s behalf without them knowing.

So the user proceeds to use the app’s legitimate functionality – for example to edit photos -- but is unaware that they are being subscribed to a paid service.

What apps should I delete?

If you have any of the apps listed below on your Android, you should delete them immediately. These have all been infected with the Fleckpe malware, and the Google Play Store has removed them from the platform.

• Beauty Camera Plus
• Beauty Photo Camera
• Beauty Slimming Photo Editor
• Fingertip Graffiti
• GIF Camera Editor
• HD 4K Wallpaper
• Impressionism Pro Camera
• Microclip Video Editor
• Night Mode Camera Pro
• Photo Camera Editor
• Photo Effect Editor

Twitter to remove idle accounts

A heads up -- you might see a drop in your followers on Twitter. The micro-blogging platform will remove accounts that have been inactive for several years.

CEO Elon Musk tweeting, quote, “We’re purging accounts that have had no activity at all for several years, so you will probably see follower count drop.”

According to Twitter’s policy, users should log in to their account at least once every 30 days to avoid permanent removal due to prolonged inactivity.

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