Google has just released the first antivirus tool that effectively combats the dangerous and hard-to-remove Ghost Push Malware that’s infected close to a million Android smartphones and other devices worldwide since being first detected in mid-September.

The “Ghost Push Trojan Killer” developed by CM Security, an Android antivirus apps firm, safely removes this stubborn trojan that’s defeated previous attempts to delete it from infected Android devices.

Ghost Push Trojan Killer can be downloaded for free here at the Google Play Store.

CM Security said its antivirus tool is the world's first tool for killing the Ghost Push malware that’s spread to 116 countries, said BGR.com. The antivirus tool scans installed applications on a mobile phone and detects if the phone is affected by any Ghost Push trojan.

The trojan installs a multitude of viruses such as “Monkey Test” and “Time Service” plus unwanted apps that are very hard to remove. Once installed, the trojan will reveal a phone’s mobile data to hackers and steal a user’s private information, among other actions. It can even damage a smartphone by overheating the battery.

It also installs unwanted ads in infected apps from Google Play Store. The many viruses spread by this malware are hidden in existing Android apps sold at Android app stores. The trojan has duped many users into downloading fake versions of popular Android apps housing the viruses.

More seriously, Ghost Push obtains full root and control smartphones and tablets by deactivating the Android device administrator without a user’s permission. This means a user can’t uninstall the virus.

Ghost Push originated in China. It was first detected by Cheetah Mobile hidden in existing Android apps.

When installing the Ghost Push Trojan Killer, CM Security emphasizes the owner of an infected phone needs to root the phone before using Ghost Push Trojan Killer to kill the trojan as it has gained the system-level access to the device.

There are three things you’ve got to remember about the Ghost Push malware that’s still infecting smartphones and other devices loaded with apps from Google Play Store.

The first is Google Play Store apps aren’t immune from the malware. The second is Ghost Push is so sophisticated it penetrated Google Play Store’s security measures. The third is it’s almost impossible to get rid of Ghost Push, at least until now.

According to Android Authority, a few of the legion of apps infected by Ghost Push are bogus versions of Smart Touch, Assistive Touch, Calculator, Talking Tom 3, Easy Locker and Privacy Lock.

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