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Background for this topic.
Google Play is Google’s official distribution platform for Android applications and games. It also provides related controls, including app review, developer signing and release mechanisms, and Google Play Protect, which checks applications for known or suspected harmful behavior before and after installation. Its security role concerns the apps and updates delivered through the store, not the security of every Android device or application.
Security practitioners monitor Google Play because malicious, deceptive, repackaged, or vulnerable applications can reach users through legitimate-looking listings and request excessive permissions or collect sensitive data. Store review and automated scanning reduce exposure but do not guarantee that an app is safe; newly discovered vulnerabilities, compromised developer accounts, and harmful updates remain relevant attack surfaces. Defenders should assess an application’s provenance, permissions, requested data, update history, and vendor security response, while using Play Protect and device-management controls where appropriate. Google Play vulnerability and policy advisories can therefore inform application allowlisting, remediation, privacy reviews, and removal decisions.
ESET said BadBazaar was available via the Google Play Store, Samsung Galaxy Store and various app sites
Trojanized Signal and Telegram apps containing the BadBazaar spyware were uploaded onto Google Play and Samsung Galaxy Store by a Chinese APT hacking group known as GREF. [...]
Cybersecurity researchers have discovered malicious Android apps for Signal and Telegram distributed via the Google Play Store and Samsung Galaxy Store that are engineered to deliver the BadBazaar spyware on infected devices