In recent days, some Android smartphones have reported that the Google app is malware. The notification is not a scam, but a completely genuine phone security warning – albeit a false alarm.
The reader who contacted Iltalehti says that he received a surprising notification on his Android smartphone. The notification had come when he had moved to the left Google view on his phone’s home screen.
The security threat notification looks like a real notification sent by the phone.
– Google appears to be malware that causes a security risk. It is recommended to remove the installation immediately, the notification states threateningly.
Unlike many similar cases, this is a genuine and proper Android OS security notification.
However, there is no reason to worry, although when looking at more detailed information, the system reports that the Google application has a virus.
This is what it’s all about
Data security expert Petteri Järvinen said on message service X on Monday that he received an identical notification on his own Huawei phone.
– The scary virus warning that appeared after the update is a false alarm, he reassures.
The story continues below the publication.
Järvinen tells Iltalehte that he has received several inquiries about the special announcement from owners of several different phones.
– It seems that the warning appears if the phone’s own system update has recently been installed on the Android phone. This has happened to at least some Samsung, Huawei and Honor models.
He reminds that the phone may have been updated without the user noticing, for example during the night.
– It’s probably just that some snippet in the update code looks like a virus according to the phone’s own security program and triggers an alarm.
Even the expert was confused
Järvinen is not at all surprised that people have been startled by the announcement. In addition to the fact that the announcement seems very believable, it is also completely genuine – albeit unnecessary.
– The announcement is undeniably scary and I was surprised by it myself, especially when by Googling the name of the virus you can find instructions on how to clean the phone.
However, there is no cause for concern this time. Järvinen confirms that it is a harmless notification.
– If you try to remove the virus, nothing happens. I didn’t get the notification to come again either, so apparently the system will fix the situation itself, says Järvinen.
False alarms possible
According to Järvinen, commercial prevention applications can sometimes give false alarms. However, the phone’s own information security warnings are generally reliable.
– This is a rare exception. Earlier in the fall, some Android phones received a similar vague notification about Google Play services, he says.