Droidjack: raid against software buyers in Germany – SPIEGEL ONLINE

The Attorney General’s Office Frankfurt am Main has taken place in a large-scale crackdown on the buyer of the software “DroidJack” for Android smartphones. Police officers searched the homes of 13 suspects in several states. The buyers of the software is the forbidden spying on data and computer fraud accused, told the prosecution to.

In the action in cooperation with the European Police Office Europol homes were searched in the UK, France, Belgium and Switzerland. In Germany it was at the suspect to persons 19-51 years from Hessen, Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria, Bremen, Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia.

They are accused of having 2014 and 2015 purchased and used the smartphone spyware “DroidJack” online. The program take mobile phones with Google’s Android operating system to target and could this fully monitored. For instance, the traffic could be observed. Likewise, software users could listen to telephone conversations and the surrounding area and make the smartphone camera images – without the knowledge of the phone owner.

spying on data for online banking

In addition, could be localized started from the infected device phone calls and sent SMS data viewed and changed as well as the location of the smartphone. In particular, the software was suitable to spy on online banking information, such as mobile transaction numbers (mTAN). When mTAN method a bank customer has a referral confirmed with a TAN number which is sent to him by SMS to the mobile phone. “DroidJack” can tap the digits.

The smart phones are According to investigators, among other things manipulated apps, such as a game, have been infected. The malicious software is designed so that it can not be detected easily by savvy smartphone users.

is a legal use of the software possible?

According to the Law enforcement officers is “DroidJack” no legal tool with which, for example, IT companies could make security tests. The program serves “only to commit criminal acts”. A bold statement – finally go so-called penetration-tester, so hackers with company mission, often unconventional ways, when it comes to attack their own systems on behalf of their clients.

On the Internet, an alleged user has already spoken out. He was affected by the search warrant, while he had the software used as a Test Engineer for “private purposes”. An IT security expert told SPIEGEL ONLINE, he could imagine buying such software for a corresponding security test also. SPIEGEL ONLINE has put a request to the prosecutor’s office, as it comes to their assessment.

Information on the degree of possible damage by malicious program could not make the prosecution. The provider of the software give in the network is not open to recognize and probably sit in India, Chief Prosecutor Alexander Badle told the news agency dpa. From investigation for tactical reasons he did not say how the investigators have come to the list of buyers of “DroidJack”.