Hackers Attacking Android Users With Fake ChatGPT Invites to Deploy Malware

Cybercriminals have set their sights on Android users through a well-crafted phishing scheme that disguises malicious applications as beta-testing opportunities for ChatGPT and Meta advertising tools.

What appears to be a legitimate app-testing invitation turns out to be a carefully planned attempt to steal Facebook credentials and seize full control of user accounts.

This campaign reflects a growing pattern in which threat actors exploit the widespread trust that everyday people place in well-known AI brands to plant malware directly onto their mobile devices.

The attack begins with an invitation email that looks entirely routine. The messages arrive from [email protected], a genuine address tied to Google’s Firebase App Distribution platform, which developers regularly use to share pre-release builds of apps with selected testers.

Since the email originates from a real Google service address, most recipients have no reason to question its legitimacy.

These messages ask users to test what appear to be early-access versions of ChatGPT and Meta advertising apps for Android, and clicking through leads to the installation of malicious APK files outside the official Play Store.

SpiderLabs analysts at LevelBlue identified this Android-targeting campaign as a direct continuation of an earlier phishing operation that had gone after iOS users.

In that prior campaign, attackers impersonated ChatGPT and Google Gemini to push fake applications onto Apple devices through the App Store.

With Android now firmly in the crosshairs, the threat actors appear to be running a coordinated, cross-platform operation designed to cast the widest possible net across the global mobile user base.

The campaign came to public attention in late March 2026, and the malicious package names tied to the operation include com.OpenAIGPTAds, com.opengpt.ads, and com.meta.adsmanager.

These package identifiers are built to resemble plausible names for AI-driven advertising tools, making them harder to question without a closer look.

Once installed, the apps present what appears to be a real Facebook login page, prompting the user to enter their credentials.

The final goal is account takeover, giving attackers access to Facebook business and advertising accounts that can be used for unauthorized ad campaigns or broader data theft.

How Firebase App Distribution Becomes the Attack Pipeline

The most technically striking aspect of this campaign is how it turns Firebase App Distribution into a delivery mechanism for malware.

Firebase App Distribution is a service by Google that lets developers send test builds of their apps to a small group of users ahead of a full public release.

People who regularly participate in app testing are conditioned to trust these invitation emails, and the attackers exploit precisely that habit.

The phishing emails look indistinguishable from a genuine developer invite, giving recipients no obvious visual clue that something is wrong.

By routing delivery through an established Google channel, attackers sidestep two red flags that careful users typically watch for: a suspicious sender address and an unofficial download link.

Since the email arrives from [email protected] and the app comes through Google’s own distribution infrastructure, neither the email client’s spam filter nor the user’s natural instincts are likely to raise an alarm.

The apps install outside the Play Store, bypassing Google’s review process entirely, which allows malicious behavior to reach the device unchecked.

SpiderLabs researchers further identified several malicious email domains actively supporting this campaign, including thcsmyxa-nd[.]com, moitasec[.]com, tourmini[.]site, ocngongiare[.]com, disanviet[.]homes, and itrekker[.]space.

Security teams and individuals should treat these as active indicators of compromise and block them at the network level without delay.

Android users should treat any unsolicited app-testing invitation with real caution, even those that appear to come from Google addresses. Applications should only be downloaded from the official Google Play Store.

Users should never enter Facebook credentials inside an app that was not downloaded through a trusted, verified channel.

Network administrators and security teams are advised to block the identified malicious domains immediately, and organizations should ensure their staff members are well informed about this specific and increasingly common form of social engineering.

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