Fake trading apps target victims globally. Recently, a large-scale fraud campaign was leveraging fake trading apps through Apple App and Google Play Store. This campaign takes advantage of a scheme known as pig butchering. Pig butchering is where prospective victims are lured into making investments often in cryptocurrency after they put trust in a romantic relationship or an investment advisor. This form of social engineering or manipulation often ends with the victim losing more than their funds. The victim continues to extract even more money through the guise of various fees or other payments. Reports of victims are across Asia-Pacific, European, Middle East, and Africa. The bogus apps are built using the UniApp Framework, and have been active since at least mid-2023. One of the apps even manages to even get past Apple’s App Store review process, thus lending it an illusion of legitimacy and trust.
How victims of trading apps are targeted
However, the threat actors have continued to pivot event after the app was taken off the stores. This is being done via phishing websites.
“For iOS users, pressing the download button triggers the download of a .plist file, prompting iOS to ask for permission to install the application. However, after the download is complete, the application cannot be launched immediately. The victim is then taking instructions by the cybercriminals to manually trust the Enterprise developer profile. Once this step is complete, the fraudulent application becomes operational.” Group-IB researcher Andrey Polovinkin said
Polovinkin added: “A successful registration triggers a six-step attack process wherein the victims are urged to provide identity documents as proof. They also are asked to provide personal information, and current job details, after which they are asked to agree to the service’s terms and conditions.” To maintain the ruse, the app is rigged to display their investments as making gains. However trouble starts when the victim attempts to withdraw the funds. At this point, they are asked to pay additional fees to recover their principal investments and purported gains.
How to combat being targeted by fake trading apps
Fake trading apps target victims globally. To maintain security, users of app stores should exercise caution when opening links, not and not respond to unsolicited messages from strangers on social media and dating apps. Users need to review investment platforms to verify if they are legitimate, and carefully scrutinize apps and their publishers, ratings, and user comments before downloading them.
“Cybercriminals continue to use trusted platforms to distribute malware disguised as legitimate applications. This is exploiting users’ trust in secure ecosystems,” Polovinkin said. “Victims are lured in with the promise of easy financial gains, only to find that they are unable to withdraw funds after making significant investments. The use of web-based applications further conceals the malicious activity and makes detection more difficult.”
Here at Velox Systems, we know your organization no doubt utilizes many apps for ease of use on the go. We can help to maintain app security, and keep a watchful eye for unusual/suspicious trends we see occurring across passwords. Let’s get you secured!