The threat actor known as Arid Viper has launched a mobile espionage campaign using trojanized Android apps to deliver a spyware strain called AridSpy. These malicious apps are distributed through dedicated websites that impersonate legitimate messaging apps, job opportunity apps, and the Palestinian Civil Registry app. ESET researcher Lukáš Štefanko reported that these apps are often legitimate applications altered with AridSpy’s malicious code. This activity has been linked to five campaigns since 2022, with three still active.
Arid Viper, also referred to as APT-C-23, Desert Falcon, Grey Karkadann, Mantis, and Two-tailed Scorpion, is suspected of being affiliated with Hamas. The group has been using mobile malware since 2017, targeting military personnel in the Middle East, as well as journalists and dissidents. The latest version of AridSpy has evolved into a multi-stage trojan capable of downloading additional payloads from a command-and-control (C2) server through the initial infected app. These attack chains focus on users in Palestine and Egypt, distributing the malicious apps via fake websites.
Among the impersonated apps are secure messaging services like LapizaChat, NortirChat, and ReblyChat, which are based on legitimate apps such as StealthChat, Session, and Voxer Walkie Talkie Messenger. Another app claims to be from the Palestinian Civil Registry, with a dedicated website and a Facebook page for promotion. This fake app uses the legitimate server of the authentic Google Play Store app to retrieve information. Additionally, AridSpy has been spread through a job opportunity app from a website registered in August 2023, which is not based on any legitimate app.
Once installed, the malicious app checks for security software on the device and, if none is found, downloads a first-stage payload disguised as a Google Play Services update. This payload can operate independently of the initial trojanized app. Its main function is to download the next-stage component, which contains the spyware’s malicious capabilities. The malware can execute a range of commands to harvest data, deactivate itself, or perform data exfiltration, including taking photos with the front camera when certain conditions are met.
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