Hirudo Android Banking Trojan Uninstalls Legitimate Bank Apps and Installs Attacker-Controlled Fakes
Researchers at ThreatFabric have detailed Hirudo, a sophisticated Android banking trojan that also serves as a remote access tool and replaces genuine bank applications with attacker-controlled copies. The malware spreads through decoy apps themed around shopping, adult video, and short series, including Shopora, 1V1 X, ZoyaTV, and KoiShort. Once installed, it uses accessibility services to detect target banking apps, verify their signatures, display a fake update prompt, and force uninstallation of the real application before installing a malicious replica signed with a publicly known test key. The trojan employs components from the open-source YAHFA and Dobby projects to intercept signature checks, hide accessibility services, bypass screenshot restrictions, and forward Play Integrity attestations to the attacker’s server. Eight ready-made replicas target seven Indonesian banks, while credential theft focuses on users in China, India, Mexico, Morocco, and Thailand. Server logs collected in August 2026 contained thousands of credentials, device data, and financial profiles, with the attestation key set confirmed as publicly leaked and partially revoked by Google.
BoletimSecOct 23, 2026Translated from Portuguese