Just a heads-up for those who may be affected.
Unremovable malware found preinstalled on low-end smartphone sold in the US
Lifeline phones sold by Virgin Mobile
Unremovable malware found preinstalled on low-end smartphone sold in the US | ZDNet
Makes you wonder what other Chinese malware is installed so far unknown
There used to be an app on play store called Stubborn Trojan Killer , it never failed to find at least one trojan installed in firmware of every chinese phone I came across , that made it a custom for me , chinese phone = scan first .
The app was able to remove such malwares but at the cost of instructing you to root your device (change status of the device user account which is by default set to user to become an administrator hence be able to access the rom) which Google hated and then decided to block the app despite the app not being the root source but just suggesting it .
The app is still found on the store but only accessible for historical owners and those who search it by AppID .
The market of chinese phones is big in the u.s , mostly people with low income trying to buy cloned devices to feel good , or the dazzling 256 gb storage 6 gb rams 150 MP cam 6.5 inch mobiles sold sub 100$ where if such features were on a Samsung/Apple they'd make you sell a kidney for one , so yea basically all of these are infected with few reputable brands as an exception so just watch out for the temptation of all those shinny perfect Yan mobies .
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Not good.
