New botnet malware infects 1.6 million Android TV devices worldwide

Vo1d is a long-known botnet that infects Android TV devices, and security experts from XLab have now discovered a new variant that’s said to have infected over 1.6 million Android TV devices around the world, turning them into remote-controlled malware bots.

According to the security researchers, the new Vo1d variant — or rather the botnet based on it — protects itself with improved encryption (which prevents cybersecurity experts from sending commands to the bots and analyzing them) and improved cloaking abilities.

The infected Android TV bots are then recruited by the command-and-control server for illegal activities, including DDoS attacks (in which a group of bots takes down a service by flooding it with requests) and ad click fraud (in which bots imitate users by simulating clicks on ads and generating revenue for fraudulent advertisers).

The Vo1d botnet is one of the largest botnets in recent years. The good news for Android TV users, though, is that while Vo1d is active around the globe, most reports of infections originate from Argentina, Brazil, China, Indonesia, South Africa, and Thailand.

How to protect yourself

Protection against Vo1d begins at the purchase of an Android TV device — make sure you buy from a reputable brand and retailer. Malware can be pre-installed on Android TV devices, either by the device manufacturer or introduced by a middleman along the production chain.

The next most important defensive measure is to install all security updates and firmware updates released by the Android TV device manufacturer, and keep up with future updates. This will prevent attackers from remotely infecting your device via security vulnerabilities.

As a third security measure, you should only install apps on your Android TV device from the Play Store and not from any other app stores.

Further reading: The best streaming devices worth buying