Chrysaor: The Dark Horse of Android Malware
A sophisticated spyware program with signs of being developed by professional cyber warfare specialists may be lurking within your Android without you knowing.
A malware system discovered earlier this year, called Chrysaor, was found to have been infecting several devices using Android operating systems for quite some time. Though steps have been taken to protect from further breaches by the program, the advanced nature of Chrysaor provides discomfiting implications about the possible severity of spyware in the future. If you think you may have malware on your device, click here to run a full virus scan:
Chrysaor is believed to be related to the Pegasus malware tool that was found infecting Apple’s iOS. Like its cousin targeting Android systems, Pegasus is incredibly sophisticated, dangerous, and hard to detect. Like other spyware, Pegasus works by infiltrating a device through innocuous means, such as fake links sent through SMS or piggybacking off of apps, which then allow it to infect the device.
Unlike other similar malware programs, however, this one was extremely easy to overlook and had systems in place to remove all traces of its existence. This is believed to be an intentional design function that allows a Pegasus-infected device to essentially become a mobile surveillance tool. Evidence suggests that these spyware programs have spread around the world.
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Both Chrysaor and Pegasus are thought to have been developed by the Israeli cyber arms firm, NSO Group Technologies. The founders of the company are believed to be veterans of one of Israel’s most highly esteemed intelligence units, and potentially have considerable experience in cyber warfare.
The good news is that Google only found a few dozen instances of devices infected with the Chrysaor malware. The very bad news is that, by its very nature, this type of program tries its best to remain hidden and untraceable, and that past infection may be hard to find on an initial sweep. The even worse news is that the implications from the evolution of Chrysaor from Pegasus and its theorized source may mean that even greater threats to cybersecurity for mobile devices may show up in the future.
With all the threats that exist and may appear down the road, it is important that you secure your devices against the event of a breach. Become familiar with the warning signs of a spyware infection and be prepared to take the appropriate steps to remove any malware.