These 20 Dangerous Apps on Play Store Caught Stealing Your Money, Delete Them Now

Android, due to its open-source nature, is more susceptible to scams and fake apps. Despite taking several measures to combat the menace of fake apps, Android is once again the centre of conversation, this time for failing to detect 20 dangerous fake apps that aim to steal users' hard-earned money.  

The Cyber Research and Intelligence Lab (CRIL) has warned Android users in India about a huge phishing threat from fake crypto wallets. If you are an Android user accessing crypto, then this is your wake-up call.  A recent research report from CRIL has detected over 20 fake and thieving apps lurking on the Google Play Store, pretending to be real cryptocurrency wallets. These apps target your crypto wallets. These apps, which resemble trustworthy sites like SushiSwap, PancakeSwap, Raydium, Hyperliquid, and Suiet Wallet, are designed to fool users into handing over sensitive login details.  And they’ve already deceived lakhs of customers in India. 

How does this scam work

More than 20 fake cryptocurrency wallet apps have been found on the Google Play Store. These apps pretend to be legitimate wallets like PancakeSwap, SushiSwap, Hyperliquid, and Raydium. These fake apps copy the look of popular crypto wallets, and when users open the app, they are asked to enter their 12-word recovery phrase, which is like a key to access real wallets. Once the user enters the phrase, hackers get easy access to the funds from the real wallet. These apps are uploaded to the Play Store using hacked developer accounts that once published real apps. What more? To make the app look convincing, these apps also load phishing websites. 

These apps are dangerous as crypto transactions are irreversible which means once funds are stolen, they are gone. These apps are available on Play Store which makes them look safe to download. CRIL warns that scam is a part of a well-organised racket involving more than 50 fake domains and repurposed developer accounts.

How to stay safe

To protect yourself from such apps, here is what you can do.

• Never enter your 12-word phrase into any app or website unless you’re completely sure it's genuine.
• Download wallet apps from official websites or verified links always
• Make sure to check app reviews, developer names, and download history before installing.
• Use security software that scans for malicious apps and behaviour.

List of fake crypto wallet apps on Play Store

Pancake Swap 

Suiet Wallet 

Hyperliquid 

Raydium 

BullX Crypto 

OpenOcean Exchange 

Meteora Exchange 

SushiSwap 

Harvest Finance blog

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