If you are a little superstitious, you might be starting to think of Squid Game as a cursed series.
The last case concerns some unofficial apps of the series released for Android, which contain viruses. But let’s take a step back before analyzing the news.
Many of you readers will have followed the harsh controversy that is accompanying the controversial k-drama. Controversial and very lucky, since it will earn Netflix 900 million dollars, despite the cost of production is around 21 million.
No series on the Netflix platform has ever had so many viewers: over 111 million. But no series before Squid Game has ever sparked such a heated argument.
The first alarm was raised in UK schools. In recent days, those of other countries have echoed, including Italy. In summary, the accusation is that the series is uneducating. And that even children and teenagers imitate (even in the classroom) the violence seen on Netflix.
There are those who ask that the series be interrupted, who have even set up collections of signatures, and the online petition created on the Change.org platform is recent.
Without wandering further, it is simply necessary to remember that every parent has the opportunity to use parental control to prohibit the viewing of unsuitable content for young and very young people. Or, as pedagogues suggest, adults could see Squid Game with their children, to circumscribe and neutralize its violent content.
Beyond this complex moral issue, now Squid Game is at the center of a problem if we want much more concrete. Let’s see what it is.
The unofficial Squid Game apps
In the wake of the surprising success of k-drama (aka Korean drama), several unofficial apps have recently been released that in some way relate to Squid Game.
They range from games to wallpapers based on the Netflix series. There are even more than 200 applications that have invaded the stores for Android and iOS.
The fact is that, taking advantage of the great popularity of the series, some malicious people have circulated malware “disguised” as games or wallpapers for the desktop or smartphone. And several thousand Squid Game fans have downloaded the virus.
Let’s see what are the offending apps.
Viruses in unofficial Squid Game apps
Of the unofficial Squid Game apps, the most harmful one contains a virus only for Android users.
Before it was removed from the Play Store, the application was downloaded more than 5,000 times. The first to notice the malicious nature of the app was a researcher who deals with the security of Android, which is hidden online under the nickname @ReBensk.
Subsequently, the app was analyzed by Lukas Stefanko, who takes care of intercepting malware on Android. Both managed not only to track down the corrupted application, but also to whoever introduced the malware. And that is a collective, well known to professionals in the sector, which produces corrupt software for Android. And who in the world is known as the Joker.
What those who have downloaded the app go through
The app in question guaranteed the ability to download themed wallpapers with Squid Game.
The 5,000+ Android users who have downloaded the app can now face advertising fraud or be subscribed to SMS services that drain credit with astonishing speed.
The researchers said that after malware makers had already tapped into the popularity of games like Fortnite and Pokemon in the past, Google has raised the bar and is now quicker to detect malicious apps. The control is twofold: before the application is loaded on the Play Store, and afterwards.
However, as is always the case in these cases, an increase in control measures goes hand in hand with the ability of malware producers to always devise new ways to circumvent protection.
Lukas Stefanko’s words
Lukas Stefanko then provided an overall statement on some of the more than 200 unofficial Squid Game apps on the Play Store.
Stefanko cites for example “Squid Games-The Game”, a sort of game similar to what in Italy is called “Uno, due, tre, stella”. And that, just to give the measure of how trendy everything that concerns Squid Game more or less directly, has been downloaded a million times in ten days.
However, explains Stefanko, this was not a malicious application. It only contained an abnormal amount of in-app advertising.
In her tweets, Stefanko then explains that the great attention paid to unofficial Squid Game apps may also derive from the fact that to date, the official video game of the series is still missing.
Finally, the technician gives an apparently obvious advice, but which obviously needs to be repeated: that of steer clear of unofficial apps: “I’d be careful about downloading unofficial apps. If you ever decide to install one, I would advise users to read the reviews of others who may warn of malicious code lurking “.