The Black Friday Mobile App Blacklist

Black Friday isn’t just delivering on the deals this year. Consumers can expect to be presented with hundreds of potentially malicious mobile apps on one of the biggest shopping days of the holiday season.

Digital risk management company RiskIQ released its Black Friday eCommerce Blacklist, which identified that one in 10 Black Friday-specific apps out of the 5,315 total that can be found searching “Black Friday” in global app stores is malicious. These apps can trick unsuspecting consumers into downloading malware and compromising their login credentials and credit card information.

According to the research study, cybercriminals leverage five of the leading eCommerce brands to exploit consumers doing Black Friday shopping across mobile and web.

“Threat actors have focused on the top five leading brands in eCommerce. These brands have a combined total of more than 1 million blacklisted apps that contain their branded terms in the title or description,” a press release from RiskIQ stated.

“The top five retail brands leading in eCommerce have had a combined total of more than 1,950 blacklisted URLs that contain their branded terms, as well as ‘Black Friday,’ that are linked to phishing, malware or spam.”

Last year, consumers spent more than $5.8 billion in sales over Black Friday and Cyber Monday, according to Adobe Digital Index. Cybercriminals are looking to capitalize on the growing trend by tricking shoppers on the hunt for Black Friday shopping deals and coupons.

“By setting up fake mobile apps and landing pages with fraudulent branding, they fool consumers into downloading unsafe apps and visiting pages that redirect them to other fraudulent or malicious sites. Nearly 30 percent of this massive influx of spend caused by Black Friday and Cyber Monday will take place on mobile devices, making shoppers increasingly at risk of encountering threats in the mobile space,” the statement continued.