1 Million+ Google Accounts Compromised by New Gooligan Malware - Are You Breached?

1 Million+ Google Accounts Compromised by New Gooligan Malware - Are You Breached?

New reports are coming to light of a new malware that has been dubbed "Gooligan" which has reported to have breached over 1,000,000+ Google accounts.

There is said to be over 13,000 new breaches or "victims" that are being breached every new day says a report by IT security organization "Check Point".

The breach is made possible through Android smartphones once again and it works by stealing authentication tokens which are set by services like Google Play, Gmail, Google Docs etc.

The breaches are made possible by people who unknowingly download legit apps from 3rd party Google Play Store writes CNN Money who have created a list of potentially infected apps.

The Gooligan breach has infected all Android devices that are running Android 4 and 5 of which, makes up around 75% of all devices on the market says Check Point.

It's not know where the Gooligan originated from as of yet, but Check Point are working along side Google to find out.

For people worried whether their Google account has been compromised or not, Check Point have created a site that lets you easily find out.

https://gooligan.checkpoint.com/

Just enter your Google accounts email address and it will tell you in a few seconds whether or not your account was one that was breached.

If it says: YOUR ACCOUNT WAS NOT BREACHED. Then you're good!
It if says: YOUR ACCOUNT WAS BREACHED. Then you're not good!

If it turns out you have, there are cleaning steps that they have recommended that you do such as formatting your computer and doing a fresh Windows install.

And then of course, changing your Google password and possibly even making changes to your accounts other security features too.

This new Google data breach highlights how important it is to download apps only from official Google certified app stores like the Google Play Store.

That is advice that a lot of people tend to ignore. Mainly because these other 3rd party app sites often have free versions or "clones" of apps that they would otherwise have to pay for.

How the Gooligan Malware Works


Image: More Than 1 Million Google Accounts Breached by Gooligan.

This follows after several malware attacks this year. And it wont be the last. These attacks are becoming ever more increasingly sophisticated as they learn more and more about the phones weaknesses and vulnerabilities.

And it just goes to show how you can't trust these 3rd party app sites and how you should only ever download apps from the official app store site only.

Accessing your Google account is a big issue because for most people, their Google account is connected to everything they do online and most people create accounts on other websites using their Google / Gmail account.

If a hacker was to gain access to your Gmail account, they could essentially reset your password on other sites and gain access to that site that way.

So let this be a heads up to you and learn from other peoples mistakes!

It's the smartest way of protecting yourself in this bright and dark digital age.