After analyzing the statistics for malware infections in devices connected through mobile and fixed networks, a recent study found that, Fifteen million Smartphones are infected with malware, out of which about 60% of the infected devices are Android smartphones and 40% are Windows PCs connecting through mobile networks. Windows Mobile, iPhones, Blackberrys, and Symbian devices combine for less than 1%. Additionally, the study says that mobile infections have increased by 17% in the first half of 2014, raising the overall infection rate to 0.65 percent.
It has been found that 4 of the 10 top malware threats infecting Smartphones are Spyware. Some types of spyware software are contained inside malicious apps downloaded from the third-party websites onto the smartphones. These spyware software are increasingly spying on device owners, keeping a check on the data stored in the phone, stealing their personal information, remotely tracking and monitoring all calls, SMS/MMS messages, GPS locations, and browser histories of an Android device, as per the study. Moreover, the top 20 malware threats include “Trojanized” apps that steal data about the phone or send SMS messages.
The top mobile threats highlighted by the report are:
- Coogos.A!tr is a Trojan for Android devices. It checks whether the victim’s device is rooted then it silently and automatically downloads a malicious system package onto the device.
- Uapush.A is an adware Trojan that also sends SMSs and steals data from the compromised device.
- SMSTracker is an Android spy phone app that records all incoming and outgoing phone calls, SMS, MMS, GPS coordinates and much more.
- iBryte is an adware that installs toolbars and displays pop-up advertisements on the infected computer.
- ZeroAccess is a peer-to-peer (P2P) bot that uses rootkit technology to hide its presence. It downloads additional malware that is used in a large scale Ad-click fraud.
As malware infections are increasingly affecting mobile phones, it has become even more important to ensure the safety and security of these devices. Additionally, with the rise of BYOD in organizations, these infected devices can cause potential harm to businesses.
Here are tips for keeping your Android device protected from such threats:
- Update your Android device with the latest antivirus software such as eScan.
- Protect your phone with Passwords. Use strong passwords & change passwords after regular intervals.
- Also, never save usernames and passwords in your mobile browser or apps, it can be dangerous if your device falls into the wrong hands.
- Before downloading any program or software conduct a background check to find out the reputability of the company that is selling the program or software.
- Keep a backup of your device’s data wirelessly, so that you can quickly restore the information on your device if the data is lost or accidentally deleted.
- When banking and shopping online, log out of websites instead of closing the browser. Do not use public Wi-Fi connection to bank or shop online.
- Do not open an email attachment sent from an unknown sender on your mobile, open it only if you are positive about the source.
Moreover, for complete security of your Android Smartphone, install eScan Mobile Security for Android from here: https://www.escanav.com/english/content/products/downloadlink/downloadproduct.asp?pcode=ES-AND-MS
