Mobile Security: Android Market Again Affected
- Mobile security specialist Lookout claims having discovered new viral applications on the Android Market. According to its analyses, the malware contained in some applications would be able to compromise the users’ personal data.
- They deem that some 30,000 to 120,000 mobile users could be infected today. The malware downloads and installs a malicious third application after user’s approval. Lookout then advises that Smartphone owners be particularly careful and pay attention to the comments posted on the Android Market.
- PandaLabs recently published a report, entitled Smartphone Malware Report, in partnership with the Spanish Consejo Nacional Consultor sobre Ciber-Seguridad. This document indicates that, considering the increasing number of attacks, the security of mobile devices now has to be improved. They remind their readers of the evolution of malicious software since the first discovered application in 2004, until the recent reports on the affection of the Android Market. Today’s researchers are especially preoccupied by m-payment and m-banking, the use of mobile phones as authentication factors, but also geolocation and social engineering techniques.
- Users are now familiar with these mobile tools and can hardly distance themselves from them: a fake sense of security has established itself. The users’ lack of awareness of the threat and their awkwardness are key factors that unfortunately contribute to the proliferation of threats.
See May 2011 Watch
- According to a study conducted by BullGuard with 2,000 British citizens between April and May 2011, 24% of the respondents use their mobile phone to connect to e-banking services and many admit they store sensitive data on their Smartphone (Banks IDs, card number, and even PIN code): all these pieces of information are likely to be used by third parties. 55% of the respondents did not know their cell phone could be infected by a virus. Despite these gaps, the users are fairly reticent to the use of NFC technologies: 59% fear their banking data might be intercepted, 64% fear for this data in case of loss of theft and 54% for the possible retrieval of their information by third parties.