Pixnapping can steal 2FA codes and messages on Android phones: Here’s how you can stay safe

Security researchers have discovered a surprising new way attackers can steal information from Android phones without even letting users know. Called Pixnapping, it can quietly read what’s shown on your screen, including two-factor codes, private messages, or location info, by “sniffing” pixels as apps draw them. A malicious app can ask another app to display specific content.

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Pixnapping is a software-and-hardware trick that uses normal Android features plus a tiny timing side-channel in the phone’s graphics system. A malicious app can ask another app to show specific content (for example, open a message thread or an authenticator screen). While that content is being drawn, the attacker probes individual pixel coordinates and measures how l