Fairly 'low budget', unsophisticated malware, say researchers, but it can collect the same data as Pegasus
When it comes to surveillance malware, sophisticated spyware with complex capabilities tends to hog the limelight – for example NSO Group's Pegasus, which is sold to established governments. But it's actually less polished kit that you've never heard of, like GuardZoo – developed and used by Houthi rebels in Yemen – that dominates the space.-based Android surveillanceware, first spotted in 2022, is still active. It has actually been on the scene since at least 2019, Lookout says.
Many of the installations detected by Lookout spoofed location tracking apps that allow the use of GPS without a cellular signal, and much of the data pulled by a fresh GuardZoo installation involves extensions like KMZ, WPT and TRK – all of which involve geolocation. This suggests its controllers are using it to gather intelligence and track troop movements – further cementing the link to Houthi rebels, Albrecht claims.
But while GuardZoo and the Houthi rebels allegedly behind it might not be a threat to an enterprise IT company in the American Midwest, there are plenty of other surveillance malware operators around the world using similar malicious software, and their numbers are growing.
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