McAfee Singles Out Android for Malware Problems

It would appear that Google's unfortunately lax approach to vetting apps submitted to the Android store is counting heavily against the platform, as McAfee have released figures showing it is now becoming the biggest target for malware writers.
Nokia's now mostly retired Symbian operating system still sits in a resounding first place with just under three quarters of all malware, but Android now has a malware problem that is growing exponentially according to the security company's quarterly threats report...
Last quarter the Android mobile operating system (OS) became the most “popular†platform for new malware. This quarter Android became the exclusive platform for all new mobile malware. The Symbian OS (for Nokia handsets) remains the platform with the all-time greatest number of malware, but Android is clearly today’s target.
They say that SMS-sending trojans are still the biggest threat but that trojans that record phone calls to steal sensitive information are now beginning to appear.
While Google's problems with malware on their Android platform are well known it should be pointed out that this report makes no mention at all of either Apple's iOS, Microsoft's Windows Phone or RIM's Blackberry apps security. It is odd that the chart they provide doesn't single out these operating systems at all, merely referring to "Others" at around 10% of the malware problem.
Ten percent of all smartphone malware however is still a huge issue and assuming that 10 percent is split equally three ways (which is just an assumption to highlight a point), while it would only be about 16% of the total malware available for Android, we're still talking about huge numbers indeed.
Mobile malware is a continuing problem and one I highlight as often as I can. The reason for this being that this malware can cost you real money in premium rate texts or other mobile charges that can't occur on your PC. It's entirely within the gift of your mobile operator as to whether they will refund such costs, but as the mobile malware problem escalates it will become more and more likely that operators will simply blame the user for downloading and installing the malware (which is fair to be honest) and refuse to issue any credits.
As the introduction to the report the company says...
The third quarter of 2011 offered its fair share of noise and signal: Malware continues to be produced daily at high levels, but we often miss its sophistication—which lies buried beneath the big numbers. McAfee Labs saw some significant increases this quarter in stealth malware techniques, often referred to as rootkits, especially from the TDSS family. We also observed the continued emphasis on mobile malware, specifically targeting the Android operating system. In fact, this quarter Android was the sole target of mobile malware writers. A true portent indeed!
Unfortunately the mobile malware problem generally is receiving precious little widespread publicity. While IT Enthusiasts might be increasingly aware of the need to install an anti-virus package on their handsets, the bulk of consumers will still see the their smartphones as embedded OS devices that will just work in the way their TV or toaster does. They won't necessarily see it as a device that can be infected and compromised.
While the report is clearly intended to shock, without the exact figures for iOS, Windows Phone and Blackberry's being released it is hard to guage overall how bad the problem is and to make a judgement over how much more of a target Android is over the next platform.
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“Do you use Google Photos?”
I do; I find it impossible not to use Google Photos on the Android phone; nevertheless, the “memory” feature is sort of neat. I’ve seen photos from a couple of years ago that that offer glimpses into the long-ago, forgotten past. It’s a lot like reviewing journal writing. “What was I doing and such and such a date?”
And, I think, when the “memories” are sorted and positioned, one can create a mini-collage with up to eight photos.
It’s so much easier to share photos with people rather than journal entries.
Nifty!
I delete the photos after 1 month of being taken. All of them are erased to return to the black and silent nothingness. Only the best ones are printed and placed in a very nice site at home. :]
I should buy a Chromebook.
None of the big tech companies are good but at least Google are the least dishonest and morally bankrupt of them. They’re always trying to do the right thing if the money allow it.
In reply to “https://www.ghacks.net/2023/08/19/google-keep-is-getting-a-version-history-but-only-on-the-web/” since the website has gone insane and no one can know where thier comment ends up.
This app should be called “Google Keeps it”. Because, they do.
I use Color Notes. No syncing, no internet, just local.
The article said: “[…] positive outcomes of genocide…”. Perhaps the AI was actually discussing the benefits of reading a “Scroll of genocide” … “You feel dead inside.”.
Martin, this post reply is supposed to belong: [https://www.ghacks.net/2023/08/22/googles-ai-search-generates-horribly-misleading-answers/] (given the the database is faulty it could appear anywhere or nowhere).
I have yet to be impressed with AI of any kind. I think it’s overhyped and not ready to live up to it.
How to use AI: Avoid the artificial stupidity at all times.
“When searched “Why guns are good,” it also prompted questionable responses, including potentially questionable statistics and reasoning. ”
Based on whose reasoning? These sorts of assertions are generally bullcrap intended to advance an agenda. If you don’t like guns, say so. Meanwhile, there are 400 million firearms in the US owned by close to a third of the population and around 20 million carry concealed.
So your opinion is not shared by a LOT of people who either enjoy firearm spots or are concerned about self-defense or both.
Wow. Ghacks still hasn’t fixed the broken comments system where old comments from a different article appear. Sad to see you slowly turn to dust since the buyout.
@Seeprime,
For over two weeks now,
I’ve been seeing “Comments” posted by subscribers appearing in different, unrelated articles.
https://www.ghacks.net/windows-11-update-stuck-fixed-for-good/#comment-4572991
https://www.ghacks.net/windows-11-update-stuck-fixed-for-good/#comment-4572951
For the time being,
it would be better to specify the “article name and URL” at the beginning of the post.
This guns comment came up in the Pixel watch repair post and I was bewildered as to what was the connection between the two.
goog = skynet
“human beings” = \slaves\
This info is so NOT correct.
I so do not want google in my life that I have NEVER downloaded chrome and I do NOT have ANY google accounts.
My browser is set to clear all cookies, cache and history every time I close it, which is every day, and I still get these world takeover login prompts on every site I go to.
So I CANT go to google accounts and turn it off.
If this info were truly accurate I wouldnt be getting these pop ups AT ALL.
Thanks @Ashwin for the article! :]
Anyone who continues to use these big tech scum’s cloud services deserves what they get.
Given Ghacks’ comments’ database problems I precise :
I’m commenting the article “Google is in trouble with YouTube Shorts – gHacks Tech News” by Emre Çitak
at [https://www.ghacks.net/2023/09/04/googles-youtube-shorts-problem/]
—
About the article’s question, “What do you think about YouTube Shorts?” (BTW first time I read here any other writer other than Martin Brinkmann directly asks the audience it’s opinion, and that’s just fine) :
YouTube Shorts may suit smartphones (which I don’t use) but on a PC they are not my cup of tea, to put it mildly.
From what I read a bit everywhere, opinions are shared : love or hate. For those who dislike many scripts and dedicated browser extensions have been developed to handle them (removal or redirect to standard video display).
I don’ view YouTube videos on YouTube but via a Piped or a Piped-Material YouTube front-end instance and these offer on search results and on channels the option to view Videos-Shorts-Livestreams-Playlists-Channels ; well, I practically never open the ‘Shorts’ display. I don’t like shorts (except in summer, hmm), I dislike the concept, fast-videos after fast-food, fast, faster … to bring what? Emptiness, IMO
Does that answer your question, @Emre Çitak :)
I despise YouTube Shorts. So much in fact, I use custom adblock rules in Brave Shields to remove that crap.
youtube.com##ytd-grid-video-renderer:has([href*=”shorts”])
youtube.com###dismissible:has([href*=”shorts”])
There’s an extension for Firefox and Chrome browsers called “Youtube-shorts block”, re-opens the video in a normal window. :)
https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/youtube-shorts-block/
https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/youtube-shorts-block/jiaopdjbehhjgokpphdfgmapkobbnmjp
ps. say NO to Shorts, it only encourage shooting vertical-videos which doesn’t go well with many desktop displays… except when shooting vertical objects, such as ahem… pretty ladies. :)
Page source shows that ghacks is still using WordPress as the platform. Knowing, more or less, how it works at the DB level I am not sure how one could mess up comments this badly. It is actually very difficult.
Google is the big leader of everything. Indeed it can actually buy Amazon, Disney, Netflix, X and whatever other company. I wonder what could happen if Google starts to build airspace ships in order to conquer the Moon. I bet that Google would be the first to offer free WiFi at the Moon. Please fix the comments.
This comment is inside the article:
[https://www.ghacks.net/2023/09/04/what-is-google-synthid-and-how-does-it-work/]
This “analysis” is disappointingly shallow and trivial. Why not include other factors like job level, responsibilities, full-time/part-time, qualifications, etc.? Because the conclusions probably wouldn’t fit the current leftist/feminist narrative. You don’t find what you don’t look for.
Misleading statistics.
Wage should be based on the amount of time, works, thinking (brain > muscle), responsibilities etc
Not skin pigmentation or your genitalia. There could be correlations, but not causations.
“Google maintains that it provides a superior product”
That is also Mozilla’s official position in defense of Google against the people, on that question of search engine abuse of dominant position by Google.
The funniest part is that not only it’s false regarding actual competitors, but even among not-actual-competitors there are meta-search engines that use exactly the same engine, just minus the tracking, so Google is clearly the inferior one compared to those already. But maybe what Google is saying is that it is the surveillance and bubbling that would make their engine superior. False again even without considering the damage those do.
“Google increases Chromebook support to 10 years”
I mean that’s great and all, but imagine using a browser-based, highly internet-dependent OS such as chrome. I’ve never used chromeOS but have seen it in person and read about it, just seems like ultra-limited user experience which relies on the concept that “most things can be done in a browser”.
What is there to support? It just a glorified web browser.
“Google launched Chromebooks in 2012 as low-cost devices and the company has had great success in the education world, especially in the United States.”
Happy tracking for all those unsuspecting children. And help normalize surveillance for those young brains. Well done Google.
No, AltaVista’s Search engine wasn’t difficult to use in the mid-nineties, and Yahoo didn’t own AltaVista either during the 1990s. Yahoo!, was a Web Directory. I was alive then and have actually used those engines, during that era, I should know if they were easy to use. So tell the angels what you’ve seen, scarecrow shadow on the Nazarene.