Meta, Facebook’s owner, is warning users that up to a million user login credentials have been stolen after its tests uncovered more than 400 malicious Android and Apple apps designed to steal personal Facebook logins.
The apps pose as entertaining or useful services such as games, photo editors, VPN services, horoscope apps, health and lifestyle services, and required Facebook users to input their login before accessing the promised features, allowing hackers to steal logins and passwords.
These login features are only used to steal Facebook account information. Meta’s Director of Threat Disruption, David Agranovich, pointed out that many of the apps identified by Meta were barely functional and eluded detection before they made it to legitimate app stores.
The Android apps were mostly consumer apps, while the iOS apps were almost exclusively business utility apps, according to Meta. These apps seemed specifically aimed at people using Facebook’s business tools.
Meta explained that it had reported the apps to Apple and Google and that the apps have since been removed from both the Google Play Store and the Apple Store.
According to a Meta spokeswoman, the company is reaching out to users who may be at risk.
The sources for this piece include an article in CBSNews.