Lukas Stephanko, a cybersecurity researcher at ESET, has detected 19 fake GPS apps in the Play Store. In total, They have been downloaded over 50 million times.“Developers lure users with screenshots stolen from real GPS apps” explains the expert.
List of 19 Android GPS apps invade Google Maps with ads
In fact, all these apps…open Google Maps by adding ads to it. they only serve “creating an unnecessary layer between the user and the Google Maps app”, says Stephanko. Such ad-filled Android apps allow hackers to quickly generate significant advertising revenue. This is how some Android malware works, like the famous GhostClicker.
- GPS Maps, Route Finder – Navigation, Directions
- GPS, Maps and Navigation
- GPS Route Finder – GPS, Maps, Navigation and Traffic
- GPS, Maps, Navigations – Area Calculator
- GPS, Maps, Navigations and Directions
- Maps GPS Navigation Route Directions Location Live
- Live Earth Map 2019 – Satellite View, Street View
- Live Earth Map & Satellite View, GPS Tracking
- Traffic Updates: GPS and Navigation
- Free GPS, Maps, Navigation, Directions and Traffic
- Voice GPS Directions, Gps Navigation, Maps
- GPS Live Street Map and Travel Navigation
- GPS Street View, Navigation and Direction Maps
- GPS Satellite Maps
- Free GPS, Maps, Navigation and Directions
- Maps and GPS Navigation: Find your route easily!
- Voice Driving GPS Navigation Maps
- GPS Navigation and Tracker
- GPS Voice Navigation Maps, Speedometer and Compass
Even some apps on this list charge people to get rid of ads. It’s embarrassing to use the free app Google Maps! The researcher explains that he denounced 19 applications to Google teams a month ago. Strangely enough, the internet giant still hasn’t deleted apps from the Play Store. We frankly invite you not to download them. Instead, we invite you to test these few Android GPS.
If I searched through the Maps & Navigation category (think “Recommended for you” algorithm) I got useless apps as top search results.
Top search has no legitimate GPS Navigation like Sygic, TomTom or Waze. pic.twitter.com/2XeoaAOXcH
—Lukas Stefanko (@LukasStefanko) January 17, 2019
The purpose of these apps is advertising revenue (easy money). They don’t have any Navigation technology or knowledge, they just abuse Google Maps.
When the user clicks Drive, Navigate, Route, My Location, or any other option, the Google Maps application opens.
I reported a month ago. pic.twitter.com/ZB1j1GsBC8
—Lukas Stefanko (@LukasStefanko) January 17, 2019
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