Cheap Android TV Boxes Pose as Phones and Turn Owners’ Broadband Into Proxies

Some low-cost Android TV boxes have been found to contain apps that alter their hardware identity to impersonate phones from major manufacturers. These apps then engage in ad clicking on websites operated by the same entities. The operation, dubbed Fuyao, has been linked to a Chinese company called Zhejiang Fengwo IoT Technology Co., Ltd., which was established in 2019. The apps in question have a dual purpose, with a second function related to the TV boxes' owners' broadband connections. The apps essentially turn the owners' broadband into proxies. Researchers have identified the company behind the operation as being responsible for the malicious apps.