Google Play Store is the primary distributor of malware on Android phones: Report

Google makes it incredibly hard to download apps directly from APK Mirrors, throwing up multiple security warnings that doing so could be potentially dangerous. And while that's true in most cases, a new report suggests that the main distribution vector for malware on Android phones is the Google Play Store.

According to research conducted by NortonLifeLock and the IMDEA Software Institute in Madrid, 67.2-percent of the malicious apps on Android phones came from the Play Store. However, this was primarily down to the enormous volume of downloads from the Play Store as compared to other sources. The report also added that Google’s defences work for the most part.

The research titled ‘How Did That Get In My Phone? Unwanted App Distribution on Android Devices’ recorded data from 7.9 million apps from 12 million Android devices over a period of four months during June and September 2019. The research found that 87.2-percent of total app downloads on Android came from the Play Store.

However, the sheer volume of installs was the driving factor behind the high 67.5-percent of malicious apps coming from it. Additionally, the research also noted that unofficial alternate markets had a total of 5.7 percent downloads of which 10-percent were unwanted installs. Lastly, backup installs accounted for 2 percent and out of which 4.8 percent were unwanted.

It is worth noting that the report also stated that the vector detection ratio (VDR) for the Google Play Store is still the lowest compared to other sources of app installs at only 0.6-percent. It also noted that between 10 and 24 percent of Android users have at least one unwanted app on their phones.