Hey guys. I have a question about malware infections and how to properly deal with them, also in regards to the Google account that's associated with the device.
I'm planning to do a factory reset on my phone due to a suspected malware infection. I've seen a guide here in these forums that recommended deactivating the "automatic restore" function (found in the Settings app via "backup & reset") which would prevent potentially malicious data from being brought back into the phone via my Google account after the factory reset.
This whole process raises one question for me, which I'd like to ask you guys:
If malware could potentially hide or upload itself into some part of my Google account so that it can re-infect me at a later time, wouldn't that put me at risk whenever I access my account in the future with any device, even after the factory reset?
Even if the automatic restore function is turned off, I'll still be accessing my account for example when I log into Google Play, into YouTube, or when I access my Google account settings via Chrome. Not to mention that I access Google account settings and services like YouTube via my PC now and then as well, which makes the whole thing even more problematic. Wouldn't all these interactions with a potentially infected Google account end up putting me at risk for malware infection on my android devices and PC? Would I have to get rid of my Account entirely instead just to be safe?
I realize this question might seem a little paranoid; after all I'm sure most people don't go ahead and delete their entire Google account just because they've been infected with malware once at some point. Most probably just de-authorize unknown devices and change their password. And I'm not even sure if the scenarios I've described above are possible in the first place. But I wanted to see what you guys think about this.
Thanks for listening, I'd greatly appreciate any advice!
I'm planning to do a factory reset on my phone due to a suspected malware infection. I've seen a guide here in these forums that recommended deactivating the "automatic restore" function (found in the Settings app via "backup & reset") which would prevent potentially malicious data from being brought back into the phone via my Google account after the factory reset.
This whole process raises one question for me, which I'd like to ask you guys:
If malware could potentially hide or upload itself into some part of my Google account so that it can re-infect me at a later time, wouldn't that put me at risk whenever I access my account in the future with any device, even after the factory reset?
Even if the automatic restore function is turned off, I'll still be accessing my account for example when I log into Google Play, into YouTube, or when I access my Google account settings via Chrome. Not to mention that I access Google account settings and services like YouTube via my PC now and then as well, which makes the whole thing even more problematic. Wouldn't all these interactions with a potentially infected Google account end up putting me at risk for malware infection on my android devices and PC? Would I have to get rid of my Account entirely instead just to be safe?
I realize this question might seem a little paranoid; after all I'm sure most people don't go ahead and delete their entire Google account just because they've been infected with malware once at some point. Most probably just de-authorize unknown devices and change their password. And I'm not even sure if the scenarios I've described above are possible in the first place. But I wanted to see what you guys think about this.
Thanks for listening, I'd greatly appreciate any advice!
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