• Data Protection

  ‘Fleeceware’ apps subscriptions steal over $400 million from unsuspecting users

  Posted by Unknown Member on 25 March 2021 at 6:23 am

  These apps are designed to tempt users with the promise of a short subscription trial for a seemingly useful service — then charge a large fee for very basic services.
  

  While both Google and Apple take several steps to protect users from malware and other potentially unwanted software on the Play Store and the App Store, the past couple of years has seen a new nefarious kind of mobile apps that trick users into paying exorbitant sums of money. These apps have reportedly earned a whopping sum of over $400 million for their developers.

  Termed ‘Fleeceware’, these apps are designed to tempt users with the promise of a subscription trial for a seemingly useful service – then charge a massive amount to the unsuspecting user, according to a post by the security solution provider Avast. Users are typically offered a 3-day trial, after which they are charged. The developers prey on users that do not understand subscriptions.

  The researchers at Avast found over 2000 apps on both stores, that charged users up to $3,432 a year after they were given a trial to try out the app. These were mostly musical instrument apps, camera filters, image editors, palm readers and fortune-tellers, QR code and PDF readers – and even slime simulators.

  What’s worse is that even after users get charged and uninstall the app, they will be charged again – unless they cancel the fleeceware app’s subscription.
  

  Unknown Member replied 4 years, 1 month ago 1 Member · 0 Replies
• 0 Replies

Log In to Reply