Dendroid (malware) explained

Dendroid is malware that affects Android OS and targets the mobile platform.^[1]

It was first discovered in early of 2014 by Symantec and appeared in the underground for sale for $300.^[2] Certain features were noted as being used in Dendroid, such as the ability to hide from emulators at the time.^[3] When first discovered in 2014 it was one of the most sophisticated Android remote administration tools known at that time.^[4] It was one of the first Trojan applications to get past Google's Bouncer and caused researchers to warn about it being easier to create Android malware due to it.^[5] It also seems to have followed in the footsteps of Zeus and SpyEye by having simple-to-use command and control panels.^[6] The code appeared to be leaked somewhere around 2014.^[7] It was noted that an apk binder was included in the leak, which provided a simple way to bind Dendroid to legitimate applications.

It is capable of:

• Deleting call logs
• Opening web pages
• Dialing any number
• Recording calls
• SMS intercepting
• Uploading images and video
• Opening an application
• Performing denial-of-service attacks
• Changing the command and control server^[8]

See also

• Botnet
• Mirai
• Shedun
• Zombie (computer science)
• Kill system

Notes and References

1. Web site: Android RATs Branch out with Dendroid . . 5 March 2014 . 23 October 2016 . Coogan, Peter.
2. Web site: Dendroid – A new Android RAT available on the underground . securityaffairs.co . March 7, 2014 . 23 October 2016 . Paganini, Pierluigi.
3. Web site: Dendroid under the hood – A look inside an Android RAT kit . Blue Coat Labs . May 27, 2014 . 23 October 2016 . Leder, Felix.
4. Web site: Dendroid spying RAT malware found on Google Play . helpnetsecurity.com . March 7, 2014 . 23 October 2016 . Zorz, Zeljka.
5. Web site: New crimeware tool Dendroid makes it easier to create Android malware, researchers warn . . Mar 6, 2014 . 23 October 2016.
6. Web site: Source Code leaks for Android RAT Dendroid . mysonicwall.com . Aug 29, 2014 . 23 October 2016.
7. Web site: Source Code of Android RAT Dendroid Leaked Online . securityweek.com . 23 October 2016 . Kovacs, Eduard. 20 August 2014 .
8. Web site: Symantec discovered Android Malware Toolkit named Dendroid . thehackernews.com . March 5, 2014 . 23 October 2016 . Wei, Wang.