Google must make Android safer – our data is at risk

It never ceases to astonish me how short sighted and narrow minded people are when it comes to the different computing platforms and how susceptible they are to viruses.

The most popular and most commonly used OS worldwide per specific platform gets targeted. That's it. That doesn't say anything about the technical merits or drawbacks of the OS itself.

You can have the most appallingly insecure OS imaginable on 1% of the world's mobile devices, it still won't get targeted by viruses and malware. easy.
 
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abandonallhope said:
The most popular and most commonly used OS worldwide per specific platform gets targeted. That's it. That doesn't say anything about the technical merits or drawbacks of the OS itself.
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Now try and convince the Linux fanboys of this when they're pointing out the amount of malware/viruses on Windows.
 
BigAl-sa said:
My question exactly. I have never heard of an Android virus - only the potential for a virus.
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Android is getting the most attention from malware creators, because it has more than 40,000 different malware compromises. This is worrying especially as the same systems for Windows and Apple phones seem to have only handful such issues (on non-jailbroken devices).
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http://www.ibtimes.com/android-malware-operating-system-now-has-718000-known-cases-malware-1374545

So far in 2013, the Android ecosystem has exploded with malicious apps designed to cheat users out of money and steal data for hackers.

There are now more than 718,000 known examples of malware in the Android mobile operating system universe, an increase from the 509,000 found in the first half of 2013. Most of them come in the form of fake versions of popular apps and are capable of stealing passwords and personal information, and some can even hijack a phone’s camera.

Security experts blame the “fractured nature of the Android network” for making it difficult for bug fixes to reach all users. Without getting these fixes, users remain vulnerable to hacker attacks.

The Telegraph reported that 44 percent of apps subscribe users to a service without their knowledge, like charging a premium rate for messages that funnel profits to a malware developer. Another 24 percent of Android malware is comprised of data-stealing apps. These are followed by adware and malware that download malicious content.

Western readers will be glad to know that the U.S. and the U.K aren’t even in the top 10 worst-affected countries. Android devices in Saudi Arabia download the most malware, followed by Burma, Vietnam, Mexico and Russia.
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Seems serious enough. its not because Android is any more vulnerable than iOS or WP, just that's its a bigger target and easier to deploy malware because the people than run the app stores aren't doing enough to stop the malware. Google needs their ass kicked.

A lot has been made of iOS getting NFC. Can you imagine NFC on an Android phone ? Hackers will be in heaven.
 
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zippy said:
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Seems serious enough....
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I am not arguing that there is malware around, just asking if anyone on the forum has experience.

zippy said:
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A lot has been made of iOS getting NFC. Can you imagine NFC on an Android phone ? Hackers will be in heaven.
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Sorry if this is a noob question: My Xperia Z came with NFC. How is that not NFC on an Android?
 
Skerminkel said:
I am not arguing that there is malware around, just asking if anyone on the forum has experience.



Sorry if this is a noob question: My Xperia Z came with NFC. How is that not NFC on an Android?
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My old xperia s has NFC.
 
Move over the Apple. I have an Android multimedia player, Android digital camera, Android TV. But when it comes to things that I have pesonal stuff on like bank details etc the iOS and Windows is the only way to go.
 
AndreTheGreat said:
Move over the Apple. I have an Android multimedia player, Android digital camera, Android TV. But when it comes to things that I have pesonal stuff on like bank details etc the iOS and Windows is the only way to go.
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Yeah like the latest celebrity mass iCloud hack. What bank are you with that doesn't have a website? Chrome on Android get updated every other week.
 
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I'm sure that many an iSheep read this article with a smug grin on their face.

...and in the other news... Apple iCloud hacked and many celebrities left red-faced after their nekkid selfies makes it way onto the interwebz.
 
zippy said:
http://www.ibtimes.com/android-malware-operating-system-now-has-718000-known-cases-malware-1374545


Seems serious enough. its not because Android is any more vulnerable than iOS or WP, just that's its a bigger target and easier to deploy malware because the people than run the app stores aren't doing enough to stop the malware. Google needs their ass kicked.

A lot has been made of iOS getting NFC. Can you imagine NFC on an Android phone ? Hackers will be in heaven.
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The oke quotes numbers without any reference. Scaremongering at its best!!

If you asked him where the numbers come from, I'm sure he will probably refer you back to one of the AV developers...

I have never seen mention of any case in the wild, and certainly not in SA. If anything had occurred here, you would have heard the fanbois on myBB gloating!
 
SeRpEnT said:
I'm sure that many an iSheep read this article with a smug grin on their face.

...and in the other news... Apple iCloud hacked and many celebrities left red-faced after their nekkid selfies makes it way onto the interwebz.
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This doesn't speak to the devices themselves, but to the problem with the cloud. You should consider all data you put in the cloud as public...
 
BigAl-sa said:
The oke quotes numbers without any reference. Scaremongering at its best!!

If you asked him where the numbers come from, I'm sure he will probably refer you back to one of the AV developers...

I have never seen mention of any case in the wild, and certainly not in SA. If anything had occurred here, you would have heard the fanbois on myBB gloating!
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http://www.symantec.com/connect/blo...-unnecessary-android-devices-despite-warnings
Symantec recently completed an exhaustive study on the Internet Security Landscape, which reported that mobile malware seemed almost exclusively focused on the Android platform in 2013. In fact, only one mobile malware family was discovered outside the Android OS. Other security companies published similar findings: Kaspersky Lab, F-Secure, McAfee, Avast, and Webroot. Although statistics vary depending on the company and the intelligence gathered, the conclusion appears to be the same across the industry: Google’s Android is a malware magnet
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Here’s a quick example. Last August was a busy month for one-click fraud scammers on Google Play. Scammers published close to 1,000 fraudulent apps on the site and tricked Android device owners into downloading the apps more than 8,500 times, according to stats shown on Google Play’s app pages. Most of the apps in August only survived one night before they were removed from the store. However, one night was enough for the scammers to score numerous downloads.
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BigAl-sa said:
The oke quotes numbers without any reference. Scaremongering at its best!!

If you asked him where the numbers come from, I'm sure he will probably refer you back to one of the AV developers...

I have never seen mention of any case in the wild, and certainly not in SA. If anything had occurred here, you would have heard the fanbois on myBB gloating!
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zippy said:
http://www.symantec.com/connect/blo...-unnecessary-android-devices-despite-warnings
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I wonder what is Symantec's core business?
 
me_ said:
This doesn't speak to the devices themselves, but to the problem with the cloud. You should consider all data you put in the cloud as public...
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I don't remember Google Drive getting hacked.
 
DA-LION-619 said:
I don't remember Google Drive getting hacked.
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Nobody is saying that Apple is immune. You need to read the whole article. 1 threat vs how many thousands ? They are saying that Google is not doing enough.

Now implying that there is no risk because the software security industry has an agenda. Well, it's their business to provide security. Even the companies that provide free versions are saying the threat is real.

And now you want divert attention away from the vulnerabilities in mobile phones to the cloud servers? Ok. So you lost the argument on the security problems with Android.

Start a new thread on the problems in cloud systems. I will join. And I will agree with you that Apple's iCloud is sh##t. I avoid it wherever possible. I also avoid Google Drive because Google has even less respect for the privacy of users data.
 
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