Is this new "lock" image malware?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Android Central Question
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A

Android Central Question

I have a Galaxy Tab A (2016). I was using it yesterday when suddenly the entire screen was replaced by an image of an unlocked lock, with a colored circle that turns around it. I have some pics of it, but I don't see an "attach" button here to post with. I have NEVER seen this before on this device despite owning it for a year.

It first appeared while I was looking at a web page so I thought it might be malware. Because my device is connected to some cloud drives with important things I was *VERY* worried that it could be ransomware that was busy encrypting everything so I immediately turned it off... but it appeared again when I turned it back on. I was so worried about it spreading further to cloud drives that I reset the device to factory settings...

Then I installed updates to get protections up to date, and now this animation happens every time I enter my PIN after turning the device back on again. So I'm thinking maybe it is a new animation that Samsung has just started without warning (though why it would happen the first time in the middle of a web browsing session I don't understand).

So... Is my machine borked, or did Samsung just scare the living bejeebs out of me for no reason?
 

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