Scammers out there seem to have created a new way to scam users out of their money by using the Play Store subscription pop-ups to trick users. The method first showed up in an app called Pingu Cleans Up. Google has since removed it from the Play Store but no doubt another will take its place.
The scam works by tricking users into confirming a subscription fee that will cost a €5.49 weekly fee. Accepting the subscription will keep it active until you specifically go into your subscriptions in the Play Store and cancel it.
You are presented with two steps that have a confirm button with some meaningless text, followed by the third one that will be the prompt that signs you up for the subscription. The hope by the scammers is that someone will repeatedly hit confirm on the first two screens and miss the final one. It may catch some users off guard since the app is using the Play Store’s official pop-up, so appears legitimate.
Users seem to have clocked onto it quite quickly and left many negative reviews warning other users. Google has since removed the app from the store.
However, it highlights how easy it is to be fooled into signing up for something you hadn’t intended and is made worse if you’ve allowed someone else on your device with a pre-registered credit card.
Stay vigilant people.
