Chinese smartphone maker Gionee is in a lot of trouble. A court in China has charged the company of intentionally installing malware on smartphones. According to a report in a Chinese publication, Gionee infected about 20 million smartphones with Trojan Horse via an app between December 2018 and October 2019. The report also states that this app was used as a tool to profit from users through unsolicited ads and other illegitimate means.
The report said that Shenzhen Zhipu Technology Co. Ltd, a subsidiary of Gionee has implanted Trojan Horse through a software update using the “Story Lock Screen” app. The report further explains that the software is automatically updated on the affected Gionee smartphones without the user’s knowledge using the Pull method. The company used a “Dark Horse Platform” to install and update the Trojan Horse malware on the affected smartphones. Gionee is said to have made $4.2 million (roughly Rs 31 crores) by affecting close to 21.75 million smartphones between December 2018 and October 2019.
The Chinese court has found Xu Li, Zhu Ying, Jia Zhengqiang, and Pan Qi guilty in the process of illegally controlling mobile devices. Xu Li, Zhu Ying, and Jia Zhengqiang have been sentenced for three years, while Pan Qi has been sent to prison for six months. Each has been slapped with a CNY 200,000 (roughly Rs 22,57,000) fine as well.
Founded in 2002, Gionee was one of the largest mobile manufacturers in China before it was sold to Indian company Jain Group (Karbonn mobiles) in 2018. In 2012, Gionee enjoyed a 4.7 percent market share in China.
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