Why Huawei phones are detecting Google app as a virus?

Recently, a sudden Virus warning on Huawei phones made Huawei phone users panic about the Google app but why it’s happening? Let’s check out what we know about this issue.

What’s the issue?

Users are receiving an in-device threat notification about the Google app. The system is saying that this app is “infected” by the TrojanSMS-PA virus and it could send SMS with personal information without the user’s consent.

This issue has been appearing on all of the smartphones that were launched prior to 2019 with Google Mobile Services (GMS) certification.

Users of Huawei P30 Pro, P20 series, P10, Mate 20 series, and more of the previously launched phones have reported such issues on Google Support Forum, Reddit, and social media site – X (formerly Twitter).

Why Huawei phones are showing the Google app as a trojan virus?

Huawei recently reacted to this entire controversy:

“Huawei has provided an explanation for the situation. According to Huawei, their virus detection and removal engine is sourced from Avast. They attribute the triggering of the virus warning to inadvertent actions caused by certain modifications in the Google app. Huawei is actively addressing this issue and working towards its resolution.” said Huawei.

Avast?

Avast is a malware and virus-scanning software, and it is available on many device platforms. The global units of Huawei smartphones come with an Avast virus scanner inside the Optimizer app.

To confirm, open the Optimizer app and tap on the “Virus scan” option on the bottom right. You will see a short description, which reads “device automatically scans for and removes viruses. You’ll be notified if a threat is detected”.

On the very bottom of the screen, you will also see “Powered by AVAST”. This is completely normal as some phone comes with pre-installed Kaspersky security feature.

However, the Optimizer app settings show that Avast is able to download new virus definitions on the phone automatically, over Wi-Fi. Although, there are more options to disable the auto-update feature but “Wi-Fi only” is set by default in smartphones.

In simple words, a virus definition is an identity database used in anti-virus programs to detect a virus in the host device. This definition updates daily, weekly, or according to the security solution provider.

What are the new changes in the Google app?

For now, there are no details available about the changes in the Google app, that triggered this entire issue but we could wait for a statement soon.

Eventually, the issue could be more from Avast’s side and it ‘seemingly’ doesn’t have anything to do with the phone’s firmware or the hardware. This thing is either coming from the latest Optimizer update or from Avast virus definition, which is panicking Huawei users.