Bad news, phandroids. Android malware is on the rise.
According to Symantec’s latest Internet Security Threat Report,
“17 percent of all Android apps (nearly one million total) were
actually malware in disguise.” In 2013, Symantec uncovered roughly
700,000 virus-laden apps.
More
than one third of all apps were what Symatec calls "grayware" or
“madware” -- mobile software whose primary purpose is to bombard you
with ads. The company also discovered the first example of mobile
crypto-ransomware – software that encrypts your data and holds it
hostage until you pay ransom for it – for Android devices.
(Norton Mobile Insights)
How to stay safe
The
good news is that it’s pretty easy to avoid infection if you obtain
your apps from a trusted source, like the Google Play Store. The company
doesn’t break out how many of the 1 million+ malware apps were found in
the Play Store, but Symantec’s Director of Security Response Kevin
Haley admits the number is probably quite low.
“Google
does a good job of keeping malware out of the Store,” Haley says. “And
if a malicious app does make it in there, they do a good job of finding
it and getting rid of it.”
On
the other hand, if you visit alternate Android app markets, download
apps from app maker’s Websites, get them via email links, or find them
on Bit Torrent sites, you run a much greater risk of infecting your
phone, he adds.
Other App Stores
Symantec
used its Norton Mobile Insight software to crawl more than 200 Android
app stores, downloading and analyzing more than 50,000 apps and app
updates each day in 2014.
Most
of the malware found by Symantec tries to steal personal data like
phone numbers and contact lists, which are then sold on the Internet’s
black market, says Haley. Some may cause your phone to send text
messages to premium SMS services, automatically adding charges to your
monthly bill. Other apps may pelt you with ads that pop up randomly over
other applications. Some apps even change your default ringtone to an
advertisement, Haley says.
The
Android malware problem is greater overseas, especially in regions
where users can’t access Google Play and must rely on third-party app
marketplaces.
Mobango is one of hundreds of alternate Android app marketplaces in the wild. Be careful out there. (Mobango.com)
If
you see unusual charges on your bill for premium texting services or
ads start popping up where you don’t expect them, those are good signs
you’ve got an infection, he adds. Your best recourse is to use a mobile security app to scan and protect your phone.
As for iOS? Symantec found a grand total of 3 infected apps in the iTunes store in 2014. Last year it found zero.
“One
of the benefits of Android versus iOS is that it gives you a lot more
freedom as to where you can download apps,” Haley says. “But that
freedom comes with a cost.”
