July 28, 2015
According to research published Monday by Zimperium, a simple photo via text message can infect most Android phones, CNNMoney reports.
The flaw reportedly affects an estimated 950 million phones worldwide, which is about 95 percent of the Androids in use today.
The problem stems from the way Android phones analyze incoming text messages. Even before you open a message, the phone automatically processes incoming media files -- including pictures, audio or video. That means a malware-laden file can start infecting the phone as soon as it's received, according to Zimperium, a cybersecurity company that specializes in mobile devices.
The Android flaw is similar to the recent Apple text hack. However, instead of just freezing a phone, a hacker could gain complete control of the device: wiping the phone, accessing apps or secretly turning on the camera.
Google has acknowledged the flaw and claims to have sent a "fix" to its partners.
Read more from CNNMoney.
