<story><title>Malware found preinstalled in classic push-button phones sold in Russia</title><url>https://therecord.media/malware-found-preinstalled-in-classic-push-button-phones-sold-in-russia/</url></story><parent_chain></parent_chain><comment><author>Scoundreller</author><text>Apple pulls some tricks like this with otherwise hidden-from-user SMSs.&lt;p&gt;In France, some cheap SIM cards charge per mb and per SMS until you register a plan. So I carefully disabled mobile data, avoided SMS, loaded 10 EUR of credit over wifi, which &amp;#x27;activated&amp;#x27; the phone on the network, but when I went to sign up for the 10 EUR plan, I found I only had 9,95 EUR left.&lt;p&gt;As soon as credit was loaded, my iPhone sent an SMS ping to an Apple shortcode to tell iMessage my new number. The sending and record of this SMS was completely hidden from the user on the phone. Cue some he-said she-said with the carrier about whether I did or didn&amp;#x27;t send an SMS. Most mobile providers zero-rate shortcodes to Apple and hide it on their billing system too, but not Lebara.&lt;p&gt;So I had to add 5 EUR more of credit just to buy the 10 EUR package for the month.</text></comment>
<story><title>Malware found preinstalled in classic push-button phones sold in Russia</title><url>https://therecord.media/malware-found-preinstalled-in-classic-push-button-phones-sold-in-russia/</url></story><parent_chain></parent_chain><comment><author>Andrew_nenakhov</author><text>Once I have bought a no-name tablet made in China that had malware installed in an unremovable &amp;#x27;browser&amp;#x27; app. It was displaying ads on top of other apps, and was &lt;i&gt;installing new apps&lt;/i&gt; onto tablet, and also restoring deleted apps, and also installing false copies of well known apps. It was rather ok because i bought it with the intention of tearing it apart, but still, the lesson for me was, &lt;i&gt;NEVER&lt;/i&gt; enter sensitive personal data in devices of unknown origins.</text></comment>