Did You Know That Your Smartphone Actually Needs Antivirus Software?

You’d never even think about operating your personal computer without anti-virus software, but what about your smartphone? As more people are getting Blackberries, iPhones and Androids, expert opinion is sharply divided on whether you need it or not. Most mobile phones have default antivirus settings, which until now have done a great job. Are we being lulled into a false sense of security?



The Threat Is Likely To Emerge Soon



IT experts note that there hasn’t been a problem yet. But when you consider the fact that the number of smartphone users is on the rise, it’s likely that cybercriminals will be busy developing ways to hack into your phone. The reason they prey on Windows operating systems for the PC is that everyone has it. As everything goes mobile, experts predict that there will be more problems.



Perhaps we can use Asia as an example. In Asia, where many more people have already been using smartphones for many years for just about everything, there are lots of text message-based scams, viruses and malware programs out there. In Japan, it’s estimated that 1 in 5 text messages is spam.



Experts agree that as smartphone use increases, cybercriminals won’t miss the opportunity. With more and more of our personal and financial data being entered into our mobile devices, people naturally are worried. Let’s look at some of the problems they’ve already encountered before we consider some antivirus solutions.



Blackberry



Smartphones that use Blackberry do basically the same things as computers. You can keep various data like financial records there, surf the web and use email. Lots of companies already use them, which makes antivirus protection a big concern. They can get malware and spam email just like PCs by clicking on certain links. There are lots of scams using sex chat lines and porn dialers to install malware. They also have been known to use "cellular botnets." These are slave phone networks that send fake traffic to phones.



iPhone



iPhone is very secure because it uses a mobile version of OS X, which is known to be pretty virus-resistant. This operating system is prevented from interacting with just any application or device, which means you don’t have too much to worry about. There have only been a few known viruses for iPhones, and they’ve only attacked iPhones that were "jailbroken," or unlocked. This means that the device has been opened by the user so that they can install non-Apple software. However, in the summer of 2010, the first virus that could attack non-jailbroken iPhones was discovered.



Android



As of the summer of 2010, there hadn’t been any known viruses made specifically to attack Androids. Since they are based on the Linux system, they are naturally very resistant to viruses. But many people believe that this has lulled users into a false sense of security. However, the first virus struck in August, infecting media applications. It sent messages to premium-rate phone numbers, sending its users’ phone bills skyrocketing. Although it’s tough to get a virus unless someone has physical access to your Android, this shows that it’s a real threat and protection is needed.



Smartphones have done well so far and their default settings have protected them from attacks. But the viruses that spread this summer show that hackers are working hard to gain access to them. It’s time we took the proper measures.



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