Hi, I was on a free video site trying to watch a show and I clicked on a link, then the FBI warning came up saying that ‘you are accused of viewing porn’ and it listed a bunch of types of porn that I’ve never even heard of. And it says I have to pay the fine in 24 hours or face 5-8 years in prison. It also had my location on it. Now it has blocked my phone so I can’t do anything on the phone. Is this a fake pop up?
‘You are accused of viewing porn’ message belongs to a type of malicious software (or malware) that blocks victim’s access to the mobile device and demands them to pay the ransom. Actually this type of malware has now been observed for several years. It is very common to both computer users and mobile users. This fake alert is mainly designed by hackers to extort money from victims. It is typically spread through phishing emails that contain malicious attachments and drive-by downloading. Drive-by downloading occurs when a user unknowingly visits an infected website and this malware is downloaded and installed without their knowledge. This attack also targets someone visiting online porn or illegal file sharing sites too. Once installed, your Internet or even the entire device will be blocked up and a message claims to be from a law enforcement agency like the FBI, or Interpol will pop up on the screen. It falsely states that “You are accused of viewing/storage and/or dissemination of banned pornography (child pornography/zoophilia/rape etc)” and then demands a ransom in the range of $100–$500 dollars, or £100 or £200 (depending on your location). Victims are always demanded to pay the fine in virtual currency, such as itunes gift card, Paypal card, Paysafecard or Ukash voucher in 24 or 48 hours. As similar as other regular ransomware like Cyber Police Virus, ICSPA Virus, you’ll get instructions on how to pay the ransom or fine on the ‘You are accused of viewing porn’ page. But paying the fine is not an option to restore access to your mobile device but just a waste of money. If you pay, you may receive a 10-digit password that claims it allows you to access your device but actually it can do nothing. This is a scam using threatening tone to scare innocent users into paying a non-existent fine. It won’t really help unlock your device even after money is transferred.
“I’ve never viewed child pornography. But I was willing to pay any money to make it go away. The cyber police warning really caught my attention and made me very nervous and anxious. However my Samsung galaxy S6 still stayed locked on that ‘You are accused of viewing porn’ page for hours, even days after I paid the $500 through itunes gift card. Since then I realized I have been scammed.” said one of the victims.
This Ransomware virus can infect most Android devices with the brands like Samsung, LG, Htc, ZTE or Huawei and it is also available on Apple devices (includingm iPhone, iPad and iPod). On android device it will lock you out of your phone and all the applications, therefore you won’t be able to call or text. Restarting your phone is not working because the ‘You are accused of viewing porn’ page will come up and cover your screen as soon as you power on the phone. When it is on Apple device it uses javascript to hijack your Internet browser and prevent you from going online. The virus can be used by cyber criminals to hijack online banking accounts. It is suggested users get rid of ‘you are accused of viewing porn’ warning manually as soon as it is found.
It will take control of your mobile phone rapidly once it is downloaded.
It will pretend itself as a legit warning and then ask for a ransom.
It will not allow you to change your phone settings or open Google Play to download antivirus program.
It will not let you power off the phone or do anything else except for inputting the demand Moneypak/Ukash code.
It may damage your phone data and compromise your privacy.
1. Don’t open spam emails from people you don’t know.
2. Don’t visit sketchy websites.
3. Don’t click on pop-up ads on your web browser.
4. Only install from Google Play or other reputable app stores.
Although this ‘You are accused of viewing porn’ virus page seems to be legitimate, it is 100% fake. It even uses web cam control to make users panic and makes them pay for the ransom wrongly. If your phone is infected with this virus, your front-facing camera may seem to record something automatically. It makes you into thinking your picture has been uploaded and sent to the legal authorities like FBI. And someone you don’t know is now watching what you are doing. The fake warning will lock your device forever and block you from doing anything. As mentioned above, we can see how this scam works to deceive innocent users. It is good at using scare tactic to extract money from victims. Hence, users must get rid of it from Android device as soon as possible.
1. Restart your phone to safe mode.
Note: “Safe Mode” on Phone starts up without loading any third-party add-ons and different devices have different ways to access safe mode.
For example:
For Samsung Galaxy S4: 1. Power down. 2. Turn on and repeatedly tap the soft-button for “Menu.”
For Samsung Galaxy S3 and others: 1. Power down. 2. Turn on, then press and hold Volume Down (Galaxy S3 and others), Volume Up (HTC One and others), or Volume Down and Volume Up together (various Motorola devices) when the vendor’s logo appears.
If you have managed to select Safe Mode, you will see the text “Safe Mode” at the bottom left corner of the screen.
2. Once you have put your phone in safe mode, contact an expert for further removal instruction.
Cybercrooks now have a new way to steal your money: a virus that generates a bogus FBI message accusing you are accused of viewing porn or engaging in some other illegal online activities — then instantly freezes your mobile device. It wants the unwary users to go out and buy a “Paysafecard” or “Paypal” prepaid card, load it with several hundreds or pounds, then enter the card’s information onto the target device and finally steals their money. Now millions of mobile device users have been fallen into this online Internet scam. Actually none of official institutions would ask any payments via systems like Paysafecard, Ukash or Paypal. Even the ‘You are accused of viewing porn’ message lists your IP address, location and device information, it is merely a scam. You should ignore the message and clear the virus off your device as soon as possible.
Note: Manual removal is a skillful and risky job, if any mistakes are made in the process, you may damage your phone immediately. If you are not sure how to do, please contact YooCare PC experts 24/7 online for help right now.
Published by on February 18, 2016 3:59 am, last updated on February 18, 2016 3:59 am
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