US Funds Free Android Phones For The Poor — But With Permanent Chinese Malware

For years, low-income households have been able to get cheap cell service and even free smartphones via the US government-funded Lifeline Assistance program. One provider, Assurance Wireless, offers a free Android device along with free data, texts and minutes. It all sounds ideal for those who don’t have the money to splash on fancy Apple or Google phones. But according to security researchers at cybersecurity cmopany MalwareBytes, there’s a catch: the Android phones come with preinstalled Chinese malware, which effectively opens up a backdoor onto the device and endangers their private data. One of the malware types is impossible to remove, according to the researchers. The researchers said that they had tried to warn Assurance Wireless, a Virgin Mobile company, but that they had received no response. The devices likely remain vulnerable today. 

[Editors note: The government does not provide any funds for these phones; carriers provide them as a perk for a subscription.]