Malloc Launches Antistalker, An Application That Can Repel Phone Peepers

JAKARTA – With mobile spyware on the rise and stalkerware becoming so commonplace, Y Combinator-backed startup Malloc has created an AI-trained app to detect the undetected. Currently the app is only available for Android but there are plans for an iOS launch.

An app called Antistalker runs in the background and notifies you if another app tries to use your device's camera or microphone. The app can even tell you which app the attempt came from. Even if you allow the app to use your sensors, it can tell you how long the connection remains active.

While spyware and stalkerware are both forms of malware, there is one big difference between the two. Spyware is malware that disguises itself as a legitimate program, so users usually download it by accident, without knowing its capabilities.

Stalkerware, on the other hand, is open about what it does and is meant to be installed on other people's devices, which can then be monitored remotely. These types of apps can be used by abusive partners, although the name of the app provides some additional information for the target audience, such as "Spy Kids Tracker" for parents or "Employee Work Spy" for employers.

Malloc improves where Google and Apple fail: Both implement security measures that force apps to show when the device's camera or microphone is being used, but some elusive spyware can still get past this.

To detect them, Malloc builds their application on a machine learning model, which allows Antistalker to use past malware to identify new ones. Because stalkerware openly acknowledges what it does, Malloc is able to put together a lot of apps to incorporate into the machine learning model.

It shows AI Antistalker the type of malware behavior and, by training it to specifically look for those anomalies, gives it the ability to recognize new malware.

Antistalker has a very simple interface, with large on/off buttons front and center. When turned on, the app monitors device sensors and runs the app, and if the camera or microphone is enabled, the app blocks them and sends notifications to the user.

Users then have the option to swipe through notifications and easily whitelist the app in question if the access was intentional. Antistalker's interface naturally allows users to see which apps are whitelisted at any time.

In addition to sensors, Antistalker monitors how much data is sent by which applications and stores this information in its interface. It specifically looks for unusual app activity, such as data bursts sent by inactive apps, so it can notify users of this. Due to topic sensitivity, Malloc clarified that the app doesn't send any data to the cloud itself, but rather collects some anonymous data to help improve it. As AI continues to learn in this way, apps are updated regularly to keep them on top of new spyware and stalkerware.