New virus Drama RAT: how one click turns Android into a «brick»

Cyberpolice issued an emergency warning about the mass distribution of a new mobile trojan Drama RAT. The virus hits Android owners, and the scale of infection is rapidly growing.  

Imagine a situation: you download a harmless mod for Minecraft, a free VPN or a music subscription to your phone. The program launches, asks for a couple of standard permissions, and after a few hours your smartphone completely blocks, stops responding to buttons and turns into a useless piece of plastic. 

What is the main trick and danger

Ordinary viruses are often blocked by the phone's built-in protection or mobile antiviruses even at the download stage. Drama RAT is designed much smarter. Scammers hide malicious code inside ordinary, clean programs. When you install the application, the antivirus does not see any threats. The trap snaps shut later, when you yourself give the program access to the «Accessibility Service». Usually this function is needed for people with visual or hearing impairments, but hackers use it to completely intercept control over the device. 

As soon as the permission is obtained, the virus begins to live its own life in the background mode. It can independently press buttons, read your messages and, most importantly, intercept SMS codes from banks. Scammers get the opportunity to log into your banking applications and transfer money. 

If the accounts are empty or the scammers have already taken everything they could, the final stage of the attack arrives. The virus changes the password of the smartphone itself, blocks the screen and begins to blackmail the owner. It is practically impossible to revive the phone on your own after such a blocking — the device literally turns into a «brick». 

How to protect yourself and loved ones

The safety rules are simple: 

• Forget about third-party downloads. Do not install files with the APK extension and applications that you found in doubtful Telegram channels or on forums. Download software only from official stores.

• Carefully read what you allow. If a regular game or a music player insistently demands access to «Accessibility» or system management — this is a one hundred percent virus. Immediately delete such a program. 

Warn the older generation. It is elderly people who most often believe messages in the spirit of «update your bank via the link» or «download free TV». Go into the settings of their phones and prohibit «Installation from unknown sources».