New user? Join now and get $2 starter gift!
New user? Join now and get $2 starter gift!
As long as they have an internet connection, everybody can access the web – which includes uploading and downloading all types of data. While this provides a great chance to share valuable information, find like-minded people, or even get discovered as an exceptional talent, it also opens the way for all sorts of malicious activities that can be performed completely anonymously.
Fake desktop and mobile applications are one of the ways bad actors can target internet users, spread malware, and cause other types of harm. By creating a fake app that pretends to be well-known software, hackers can trick unsuspecting users into downloading them… along with viruses, information stealers, and other issues. In this article, we’re going to explain what Honeygain does to fight these cybercriminals and what steps can help you identify a fake app before it’s too late!
Just last week, we wrote about the extensive research done by Cisco Talos Intelligence Group – one of the world’s most prominent commercial threat intelligence teams. In the report they published on August 31, Cisco Talos explained in great detail how hackers can exploit proxyware by creating infected installers and fake apps with malicious code inside and spreading them through fake websites, forums, and other unauthorized sources.
Unfortunately, the internet is ripe with fake Honeygain installers and apps as well. The only way to stay safe and prevent harm that bad actors could potentially cause to your device or network is to always make sure you’re downloading Honeygain from an authorized source – the Honeygain website.
Imagine you decide to download Honeygain from some discussion board, fake website, or other unofficial sources. Even if you’re lucky enough to get a non-infected installer (which is highly unlikely), you might get an outdated version of the software or one that’s not meant for your operating system. Using the official website, you can always be sure you’re getting the genuine Honeygain app in the latest version available!
If you’ve been following Honeygain for a while now, you probably know how serious we are about ensuring the safety of our users and the network itself. We require 2-factor authentication for every payout, limit the number of devices per account, and use special fraud and abuse algorithms to monitor our infrastructure 24/7.
But that’s not all: our dedicated security team is also putting a ton of effort into taking down fake Honeygain apps so no potential user can download them and become a victim of a cyber attack. In September alone, we have identified 65 web pages that offered their users to download Honeygain installers our team has never authorized. Every such page is a security risk and damage waiting to happen.
Honeygain has already taken down 72% of all the web pages the team found to offer fake or infected Honeygain apps for download this month!
Remember the web pages we mentioned that were distributing fake Honeygain installers? We have already successfully taken 47 out of 65 down, and the owners of the remaining ones have been identified and contacted as well. This means that it’s just a matter of time before these unauthorized channels are gone for good.
It’s easy to say that people who wish to stay safe online should never download fake apps – however, identifying a fake app from a genuine one might not be so easy.
Most hackers aren’t stupid, and they do everything they can to make the malware they spread seem as similar to the real app as possible. Hence, it’s not that uncommon to find infected applications on app stores – even major ones. According to Trend Micro, Google Play currently houses more than 120+ fake cryptocurrency mining apps that do not actually have any mining capabilities and have already tricked thousands of users into paying to use them or watching in-app ads – and that’s just one type of fake apps!
With Honeygain, there’s a simple solution: the company has an official website with a Download page that offers the latest versions of genuine Honeygain apps for Windows, macOS, Linux, and Android. Unfortunately, some other apps don’t have those and rely solely on third-party distributors.
Malicious hackers have been getting more and more active these past few years. It’s hardly a surprise: since the pandemic forced many businesses and service providers to move their operations online, we’ve been using the web more actively than ever. Unfortunately, if we’re not careful, every new app or website we visit can mean a risk of cyber attack.
Curious about joining Honeygain – a crowdsourced web intelligence network that offers its users a chance to make money by sharing their extra bandwidth – but want to stay cautious?