Also read: This website will notify you whenever Covid vaccine slots for 18+ open up on Cowin portal
As seen in the Tweets above, the alleged COVID019 vaccination app asks for a laundry list of permissions from a user. The worst part is, we don’t know what else the malware does other than propagate itself via SMS. It could potentially transmit sensitive information from your devices, such as your contact list and gallery images to unscrupulous third parties. SMS-based worms are nothing new and have been around for a long time. Some time ago, a fake app promising three months of free Netflix also used a similar method.
As always, we recommend that one exercise caution when clicking on mysterious links, even if they have been sent by someone you trust. Currently, there is only one method of registering yourself for a COVID-19 vaccine, which is via the Cowin website and the Aarogya Setu app. Everything else is a scam and you’re better off staying away from such websites/apps.