Security @programming.dev kryllic @programming.dev 2 mo. ago

1.3 million Android-based TV boxes backdoored; researchers still don’t know how

arstechnica.com 1.3 million Android-based TV boxes backdoored; researchers still don’t know how

Infection corrals devices running AOSP-based firmware into a botnet.

Researchers still don’t know the cause of a recently discovered malware infection affecting almost 1.3 million streaming devices running an open source version of Android in almost 200 countries.

12 comments

Well that’s encouraging. Thank all the gods I only own dumb TVs
- This is about the boxes you plug into the TV, like a Roku, or Fire TV, except it's the cheap Chinese white box rebranded Android TV boxes you buy on places likeAmazon, Ali, and eBay.
  
  Ah, so it is. My bad
  
  They don't even run Android TV. They run a modified (normal) Android. This is well known, but the article also mentions it.
  
  So basically a non-issue unless you just plug the cheapest streaming box you can get your hand on into your devices.
- Isn't the article about tv boxes that you use with your dumb TV so you can watch streaming stuff on it? I don't think any TVs are affected
  
  Seems like that’s true. My bad
Given that they are not certified by google its probably cheap chinese ones. Im pretty sure they are known to often contain malware out of the box

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