Monday, January 21, 2013

Are you Concerned About Android Security

By Jan Everone


From hacks to malware, mobile phone security is beginning to become a dilemma that companies are battling to contain. While the steady rise in people buying smartphones continues, the same is true the volume of criminal gangs and lonely computer nerds trying to find a tactic to crack or obtain info from your phone.

Viruses can not only interfere with a variety of capabilities on your Android smartphone but could also open up a backdoor enabling various types of snoopware (apps that search for private information to transmit back to the hacker) to be set up and jeopardize the cell phone.

Google has taken many precautionary security measures whilst building the Android OS which included the capability to push upgrades and patches to Android smartphones but without the user being forced to request it. This feature was a godsend for many Android customers when in March 2011, Google introduced a security patch which prevented rogue applications from getting at private info, effectively providing a kill switch for these damaging applications.

The malware in the center the problem was called the DroidDream Trojan and it was discovered to be deeply embedded in well over 58 software programs. By simply pushing out the remotely triggered upgrade, Google managed to perform virtual surgery on Android smartphones around the globe. This is only one of many ways that your smartphone is secured.

You can also make your Android phone more secure applying a few basic strategies.

First and foremost you should configure the phone's password ,this helps prevent low level malicious software from getting installed. To achieve this open the Settings ... Location & Security Settings ... Select the password of your choosing. Now, configure a small Timeout option with Settings ... Display ... Set a value (ideally under a minute).

Another security measure is to make use of the authorization mechanism that enforces polices on what processes an app can conduct. It additionally defines what files it is permitted to access. This protects your smartphone so even if a malicious app makes its way in to your device it will be restricted to what it can accomplish. Without setting up permissions there is a risk that malicious software can silently obtain all of the information from the device.

Ultimately, there are lots of third party security apps like Norton's Mobile Security software which is able to carry out many useful functions like blocking unauthorized applications from being installed in the first place. Additionally it can remotely lock the device if the SIM card has been taken out. This is incredibly handy if your smartphone gets ripped off!




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