Ofcom Warn Consumers Of 'App Scam'

Criminals are trying to cash-in on the smartphone boom by tricking consumers into downloading infected apps, experts warned today.
The rogue apps enable the fraudsters to hijack the phones and run up huge bills for victims.
One scam involves criminals taking control of the phones and then repeatedly sending premium rate messages – costing up to £6 per message – to their own services.
Often the victim is unaware anything is wrong until they see their phone bill, or their network provider identifies 'suspicious' activity – by which time the fraudsters have moved on to other victims.
Experts from Get Safe Online – the UK’s national internet security initiative supported by Ofcom – say that mobile malicious software (malware) has increased by 800% in just four months.
(LB)