Virus - How Safe Is Your Cell Phone?

According to a report by Chetan Sharma 84% of all mobile devices sold within the United States during 4th quarter 2012 were smart phones.  This pushes the total market share of smartphones to be over the 50% mark.  A trend that shows no signs of decreasing any time soon.  As technology advances, the desire to have one device that does it all becomes more and more of a reality. Not only are we carrying a phone, but also a camera, video recorder, computer,  hand held gaming system, calculator, and more apps than we know what to do with that allow our phones to be and do nearly anything we desire. Wanna watch a movie? Netflix to the rescue.  Tired of carrying a check book to record your debit card transactions? Give Spensa Pro a try.  Love music? Find all you could ever need with Pandora, Slacker, iHeart Radio, and SoundHound. Movie Buffs look no further than IMDB.  It's no doubt, however, that with the good comes the bad. For all the benefits to be gained from smartphones, it was just a matter of time before cyber crime found its way into the devices we use every day.

Just last week the mobile security company Lookout found the malware they have named "BadNews" a new malware trojan that has one disturbing characteristic which allowed it to sneak past the security system used by Google Play Store.  There have been billions of applications downloaded from the Google Play Store since its inception, with new applications released every day.  Because of this, and the reality of the potential for malware and visrus's to creep into the network the people at Google have implemented a new layer of scurity to keep your device and information secure. So, how is it that this newly found "BadNews" threat has found it's way past the security at Google Play Store? Well, in their defense, there will never be a completely foolproof system as the industry and technology changes so do the threats and that is exactly how BadNews has found it's way into our lives.  Because as bad as BadNews is, it isn't the major culprit.  BadNews is simply the tool in which the fraud malware AlphaSMS is being distributed to unsuspecting smartphone users world wide.  The good news for American cell phone users is that as a whole most apps infected with the BadNews malware have originated in Russian applications.  This does not mean that you are out of the woods, just that we as users need to be more cautious in our downloads and making sure that we protect the devices that we depend on daily.

So, how does this software work, and back to our previous question how is it getting past Google?  The trick is in a delayed deployment feature built into the malware.  In its infancy BadNews appears to be nothing more than a harmless if not annoying advertising network. This facade is what has allowed the developers of BadNews to sneak into Google Play Store. Once in your phone BadNews pushes false advertising and news offers to your device just waiting for you to click on one.  At which time it pushes out an even more aggressive fraud malware in the form of AlphaSMS. This has been possible because of the delay in deployment therefore it sneaks in undetected at the time it is admitted into the Google Play Store.

Now, for the real question, What can you do to protect yourself and your cell phone safe and secure?

First and foremost I highly recommend installing Lookout Mobile Security on your device.  While I've never had a virus on my phone I would never take the chance.  Remember that smart phone in your pocket, is at its root a computer, and just like  your laptop and desktop computers it is vulnerable.  Protect yourself!

Do you ever get text messages from unfamiliar numbers urging you to go to a site to pay your bill, claim a prize, or alerts you to a potential virus on your phone?  These and any other text from a number you are not familiar with are best deleted, as they often contain a virus or other form of fraudulant link in which cybercriminals are able to collect your sensitive personal information.

And of course always use common sense when downloading apps and updates to any device you may have. This may be the one step that most people forget, we get comfortable with our devices, and gain a false sense of security when we are downloading from the Google Play Store.  Ensure that the app you are downloading is from a legit source, take your time, double check online to see if you're getting the right app and not a damaging look a like.