Don't download these fake Patanjali Kimbho apps, original app deleted from Play store

Don't download these fake Patanjali Kimbho apps, original app deleted from Play store

Baba Ramdev's Patanjali Communications launched a messaging app on Wednesday night with the aim to take on the Facebook-owned instant messaging application, WhatsApp. In just a day of being live Patanjali's Kimbho app faced several allegations of being unsecured. Several security researchers discovered the security system of the app to be weak. Popular Franch security researcher who goes by the name Elliot Alderson on Twitter also said that same. Talking to India Today Tech he said that it was very easy for him to "bypass the verification process" of Kimbho and access all the user data like chats.

Soon after reports of data security breach started making rounds on the internet, Patanjali pulled down the Kimbho app from both Google Play store and Apple's app store. Not only Kimbho has taken down the app from Google Play store, but also from its official website. But, beware, because mock-ups of the Kimbho app are flooding the Play store (see image below). The app was removed on Thursday morning.

Interestingly, the reason Kimbho gives behind deleting the app is different, and which Alderson believes is "a lie". Kimbho says they have deleted the app because of high demand.

If you type 'Kimbho' 'Kimbho app' or 'Patanjali Kimbho app you'll see innumerable apps with the same name, but different developers. And the number of apps is just growing with every passing day. Note that these are fake apps and you definitely shouldn't download them. The same issue was spotted by Alderson. "#Indian #android #developers are fast. If you search #Kimbho on the PlayStore you will find a lot of fake apps. They renamed their apps with #Khombi in the title," Alderson notes in tweet.

Kimbho has also clarified the presence of fake apps in Play store and requested users to not download them. "Our trial version of #kimbho app is no longer available for download on any platform. We don't take any responsibility for many duplicate apps showing anywhere. Beware! Please stay tuned," Kimbho writes in its Twitter handle which goes by the name Kimbho Chat App.

Here are some top names of the fake Kimbho app we discovered -- Kimbho official app, Kimbho messaging app, Kimbho fun time, Kimbho video play, Kimbho app and so many more. Downloading these apps can call for serious data breach.

It is it very difficult to find original app among the fake one. These fake apps have not only used the name of Kimbho but also the logo of the app. Some also include picture of Baba Ramdev to make it look more genuine.

As mentioned earlier, Kimbho app has been deleted from Play store and is currently unavailable for download. But, the company says it will be back soon. "We are facing extremely high traffic on Kimbho. We are in process of upgrading our servers and will be back shortly. Sorry for the inconvenience. Please stay tuned," notes Kimbho in an official statement.

Here's how to spot a fake app on Play store:

--Check the name of the app

--Check the name of the developer

--Read user reviews

--Number of people downloaded the app

--Read the description

--Check the rating

So before downloading the app when it launches again, you should check for the developer and above-mentioned categories. It is noteworthy that the original Kimbho app has been developed by Patanjali Communications.