Apple App Store Fills With Malware

Apple has been criticized with their strict regulations for getting apps approved for their app store.  However, it was recently reported by Fortune that the Apple App Store has been filled with malicious apps, just in time for the holiday shopping season.  Some of the malicious apps include falsified versions of the Dollar Tree, Nordstrom’s and Christian Dior.  Apple has made statements reporting these malicious apps have since, been removed.

Some of the malicious apps requested credit card information, while others attempted to gain personal information off of the cellular device.

Staying Safe

This holiday season, more people than ever will be shopping online.  This includes purchases made from computers, tablets, and smartphones.  Scammers are aware of this.  Be sure all purchases made are from legitimate, secure sites.  You can confirm this by verifying the URL includes https://.  If using apps through the Apple, Windows, or Google Stores, making sure these apps are legitimate is just as important.

Historically, Apple has been incredibly successful with keeping malware out of their app store.  Since a full list of malicious copy-cat apps is not being disclosed, it is best practice to uninstall any shopping applications.  Since Apple is reporting all of the malware has been detected and removed, you can then reinstall the legitimate app.

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