Cyberpunk 2077: A mobile game app turns out to be malware

Despite poor performance (at least on the console version) and controversial reception of cyberpunk 2077, there are several players excited about the arrival of the title of CD Project Red and they would do anything to get their hands on this game. Taking advantage of this situation, some cybercriminals have released a fake mobile version of the title which is actually a ransomware / malware. As obvious as this may seem, it is fair to specify that there is currently no mobile version of Cyberpunk 2077, so any mobile Android app or installer is totally fake.

Earlier this week Tatyana Shishkova, analyst on behalf of Kaspersky of malware Android, discovered a ransomware disguised as a mobile version of the Cyberpunk 2077 game. A bogus website that was actually disguised to look like the Google Play Store was offering a mobile version of the title but it was found that the aforementioned version actually installs ransomware on the victim's mobile device, infecting the device in the process. This new ransomware has been dubbed Coderware and, once a mobile device is infected, the contents are fully encrypted. However, this ransomware uses a "hard-coded key“, Which means that a decryptor it can be used to recover files without paying any ransom fee required by cyber criminals. According to the ransomware's instructions, affected victims only have 10 hours to send dollars 500 in bitcoin to the attackers, otherwise their encrypted file will be permanently deleted. The best way of course is to protect your mobile device is to not download or install unofficial software or any third party Android apps.

Cyberpunk 2077 is currently available for PC, Xbox One e Google Stadia. Regarding PlayStation 4, physical copies are still in circulation, but Sony has removed the game from PSN Store. Meanwhile, the official store of Microsoft products presents a statement warning players of performance issues until the next updates.