Protect Your Other Important Device! Security Issues Of The Android OS

Since the mobile devices have become more popular means of personal and professional information than desktop PCs, they attract fraudsters’ attentions. High consolidation of operating systems, impressive and constantly expanding base of mobile devices stirs interest in hackers, who are trying to pursue as such profits as it is possible.

According to the research of the Sophos Company for 2013, the main objective of cyber-attacks is now Android. An open source core of Android operational system is the reason for the growing number of threats for Android. Any security vulnerability that is discovered in it instantly becomes available to the general public.

SMS messages and email correspondence, documents, photos, web pages visited, browsing history data of GPS-receiver are among the types of data that are at risk of theft in the process of system penetration of scumware.

Typical examples of scumware

The most dangerous threat of this type:

• Trojans family
• Commercial products designed for cyber espionage
• Malicious applications that can intercept text messages and e-mail messages containing confidential information

Ways and methods of penetration

The spread of scumware for mobile devices:

• Usage of known vulnerability exploited to enhance the benefits of malicious applications on the system;
• The use of methods of social engineering: an offer to upload the updates or free paid commercial application;
• SMS, e-mail, tracking the movements according to a GPS-navigator data.
• Mass texting. Infected devices can be used to send spam or other test messages for example, political and religious ones.
• Making calls to premium rate numbers, stealing money from the accounts of the owners of mobile phones by means of subscribing them to various paid services.
• Adding sites that are specified in the configuration file of the malware to the browser bookmarks;
• Extortion of money for stolen data;
• Theft of confidential information. Stolen data is loaded on a website that was specially created by the virus writers. This information can be sold for use in spamming or extortion target;
• Launch and removal of different programs on the infected device, downloading other malicious applications;
• Stealing passwords to access various programs and online services, such as FTP-resources of the company.

When developing an app, it’s highly important to make sure your app complies with security standards and will not become a weak point for your prospective users. Estimate the price of testing your app on all popular Android OS versions!

Obligatory security facilities

• The system of checking the link references. Eliminates the possibility of moving to malware and fraudulent resources.
• Checking files that are incoming to the device. Allows to reduce the risk of introducing scum programs from untrusted sources and avoid hidden download unsolicited application components containing malicious functionality.
• System access restrictions. Allows you to limit the number of visited resources to the minimum necessary to minimize the risk of infection from sites that contain scum ware objects.
• Anti-virus scanner. Makes it possible to detect malware, somehow managed to penetrate the device (including the period when the signature of the malicious program has not yet been added to the virus database.
• Creating a list of allowed applications. Reduces the risk of run unknown applications without its preliminary checking for safety.
• Anti-virus monitor. It gives you an opportunity to prevent infection by scum objects penetrated on your machine without checking-in (for example in password-protected archives or with the help of special data transfer protocols).

NB! These protective measures should be taken on all mobile devices, regardless of operating system.