Keeping our favorite messaging application installed on our mobile phone has become common in most cases. WhatsApp is the undisputed leader in the sector, which is why it has become the target of multiple attackers to try to deceive us.
In this way we manage to maintain contact in real time and at all times with our friends, family or co-workers. In most cases what we do is access the official store of our Android-based phone, to download the WhatsApp application itself. From there we associate our phone number with the app itself and we start working.
However, there are many users who are looking for other, perhaps more functional, third-party alternatives to certain official applications such as WhatsApp. They install them on their computers thinking that it is a more than correct decision, although the truth is that there are certain risks involved, as is the case in the case that concerns us now. What may seem like a good idea at first, over time can become a serious problem for our private data and even for the device.
We tell you all this because security experts are currently recommending users avoid using unofficial WhatsApp applications. And the malicious code known as Necro is spreading like wildfire in our country. Right now we can affirm that this is a malware that is affecting devices throughout Europe, but especially in Spain. Not only that, our country is in seventh place in the world in terms of attacks through the aforementioned Necro.
How Necro attacks us through WhatsApp
The first thing we must keep in mind is that this is malicious code that generally reaches our devices through unofficial applications. Although WhatsApp is the greatest exponent in this sense, it also affects other well-known titles such as Spotify or Minecraft. And many users choose to use third-party applications or mods that they install on their devices, with the risk that this entails.
Hence, the creators of the Necro malware are using these apps to access our data and equipment. Actually, when talking about this malware, we find a Trojan specially designed to infect our devices and take control of the operating system. It enters the software without us realizing it and begins to carry out all kinds of malicious actions.
It was created to work remotely without the user realizing that it has been installed on the computer and is running in the background. From there it can load all kinds of malicious software, modify device settings, and even take out paid subscriptions on our behalf. It is also capable of opening all types of links and displaying advertising.
Hence, we should avoid at all costs the installation and use of unofficial applications such as the aforementioned WhatsApp or Spotify. Otherwise, we are taking an unnecessary risk and endangering our devices and stored data due to Necro malware.
