New Android Warning: Delete this text message now or pay a heavy price

Android users have been put on high alert after researchers discovered a new malicious text message designed to steal bank details and raid your address book.

And if you get a text message from a friend or a close contact asking you to download a new video player app, be careful.

Express stated that to carry out this devastating attack, the text message takes advantage of a new malicious program known as Flubot, which can infect Android devices, and once installed it has capabilities to allow cyber scammers to steal bank credentials, intercept text messages, and even capture Screenshots of the victim's device.

To make matters worse, it can also raid your address book and distribute more fake messages to any contacts it finds.

This is one reason security experts are so concerned about Flobot because it will always appear as if the fake message was sent from someone you know and trust.

According to experts at MalwareHunterTeam, who spoke to Bleeping Computer, Android users should look for any text messages asking if they intend to download a video from their device.

A link will be included in the message that will take the victim to a fake page to download Flash Player.

This is the app that will start a Flobot's nightmare, and if you get a message asking you to download an app outside the Google Play Store, the advice is simple: don't respond to their request.

One of the reasons Android users have always been swayed by these scams is the open nature of this operating system;

Unlike Apple, which only allows apps to be downloaded via its official app store, Android users can install files and programs from anywhere on the web (provided they tweak the default settings a little).

This means that scammers can produce and distribute fake apps filled with malware directly to Android devices, without having to sneak under the radar of Google's security features built into the Play Store.

To avoid the recent Flobot attack, it is advised that Android users should not click on any strange external links even if they are placed in a text from friends.