US government warns of Android's dominance in mobile malware

135

Comments

  • Reply 41 of 85
    umumumumumum Posts: 76member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by anantksundaram View Post


    As of this time -- two hours after it has been posted on AI -- there's not a peep about this on news.google.com. Not even in their 'Technology' section!


     


    Hello?!



     


    two hours? ai took over two weeks to report jekyll - which was made public in july, but for some strange reason not news enough for ai until 16th august, which is surely far more relevant to a site calling itself apple insider than yet another piece of fanboy clickbait


     


    don't recall you complaining about that though, seems not to match your prejudices


     


    you fanboys are so insecure, always seeing conspiracy, yet happy to ignore or deny unpleasant reality, makes you easy targets


     


    i love apple, but fanboys make me sick, you have one use: buy more apple, make my shares go up fanboy

  • Reply 42 of 85
    tallest skiltallest skil Posts: 43,388member

    Originally Posted by umumum View Post


    i love apple, but



     


    Maybe stop insulting users here, along with not doing this ? crap.

  • Reply 43 of 85


    US government warns of Android's dominance in mobile malware


     


    What's the saying? Crap attracts the most flies. (Cleaner version than I could of put.) image

  • Reply 44 of 85
    tallest skiltallest skil Posts: 43,388member

    Originally Posted by TogetherWeStand View Post


    What's the saying? Crap attracts the most flies. (Cleaner version than I could of put.) image



     


    Apparently you can catch more flies with vinegar than with honey.


     


    Wait, that's actually true, isn't it? 

  • Reply 45 of 85
    MacProMacPro Posts: 19,723member
    lol. But Android users have a large screen!

    All the better to see that malware with! :D
  • Reply 46 of 85
    MacProMacPro Posts: 19,723member
    As of this time -- two hours after it has been posted on AI -- there's not a peep about this on news.google.com. Not even in their 'Technology' section!

    Hello?!

    At least they are not lying ... just ... mmmm... not reporting .... :D
  • Reply 47 of 85
    MacProMacPro Posts: 19,723member
    Apparently you can catch more flies with vinegar than with honey.

    Wait, that's actually true, isn't it? 

    They both pale next to my home rigged 1 trillion volt tennis racket.
  • Reply 48 of 85
    philboogiephilboogie Posts: 7,675member
    Apparently you can catch more flies with vinegar than with honey.

    Wait, that's actually true, isn't it? 

    They both pale next to my home rigged 1 trillion volt tennis racket.

    Aces!
  • Reply 49 of 85
    tallest skiltallest skil Posts: 43,388member

    Originally Posted by PhilBoogie View Post


    Aces!


     


    in spades!

  • Reply 50 of 85
    So Android is the new Windows, and, like Windows, a little malware never stopped people from using it, right?

    Wow, you'd think people would learn something by now...? After hundreds of thousands of viruses and other 'malicious software' out in the wild over on the Windows platform, and now bubbling up to parallel proportions on Android devices.

    I guess people just can't live without feeling like super-hero "malware crime-fighters" or something… do they thrive on the drama of battling infections or what?

    I can already hear the repurposed "PC's have more viruses than Macs because there's more of them" meme getting ready to roll out:

    "Android has more malware than iOS because it's the most popular mobile OS, and attracts more attention from malicious hackers. If iOS were more popular, they'd have more malware too!"


    Yeah right. Not going to work this time.
  • Reply 51 of 85

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by lkrupp View Post


    Actual response received from someone I know quite well.


     


    Me: Why not consider an Apple Macintosh?


     


    Friend: Apple? Are they still around?


     


    Me: Yes, they make the iPhone and the iPad and the Mac.


     


    Friend: The iPhone and iPad are Apple?



     


    Might be time for some new friends. image

  • Reply 52 of 85

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Suddenly Newton View Post





    True. If you don't know how to root your phone and troll on slashdot all day, you're not a Real Android user.


     


    *sigh*  guess I'll never be an RAU ( Real Android User™). 


     


    I'm so sad now.

  • Reply 53 of 85
    ochyming wrote: »

    Funny!
    Not the last paragraph, tho.
    … They just Think Different.

    Again, i am sure, The Guardian, The BBC and The HuffingtonPost will ignore this.
    Don't you get it?

    When the government warns of Android security conserns, it isn't news. But if that was iPhone, then it would be BREAKING NEWS!
  • Reply 54 of 85
    chipsychipsy Posts: 287member


    With openness comes responsibility (for the user), that is a known trade off. I just don't get that if the FBI and DHS are so worried about malware and security of Android devices, why they aren't using SEAndroid (Security Enhanced Android). SEAndroid works in the same way as SELinux, it isolates threats and prevents them from causing damage to the system by using a 7 level security policy. "Basically, the goal is to stop mobile apps granting themselves extra privileges, or prevent apps from sharing too much data, or prevent the bypass of security features." (so even if malware is installed it would be sandboxed and unable to do anything). It's not guaranteed 100% protection (nothing will ever be) but it increases security by a large factor.


     


    BTW from 4.3 on Android supports SElinux out of the box (I'm not sure if it's completely integrated already or at this moment in time only partly). http://source.android.com/devices/tech/security/enhancements43.html

  • Reply 55 of 85
    d4njvrzfd4njvrzf Posts: 797member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Chipsy View Post


    With openness comes responsibility (for the user), that is a known trade off. I just don't get that if the FBI and DHS are so worried about malware and security of Android devices, why they aren't using SEAndroid (Security Enhanced Android). 



     The issue is not "openness" (a vague term I dislike using) but rather the fact that the system is designed like a handheld computer. It shares several fundamental features with OS X like seamless inter-app communication, itemized sandbox permissions (OS X 10.7+), and the ability to install software from anywhere (though not by default, much like how OS X's Gatekeeper only allows App store software by default). You don't install programs willy-nilly on your Mac despite it letting you do so. The same considerations apply to android.  Neither platform will stop you from facing the consequences should you choose to invite risk, but they both warn you along the way. OS X throws up a warning when you set Gatekeeper to allow non-app store software, and similarly for android.


     


    The FBI does seem to be getting SEAndroid devices (http://www.dailytech.com/Report+FBI+Looks+to+Dump+BlackBerry+Get+Samsung+Androidbased+Smartphones/article32017.htm). 

  • Reply 56 of 85
    chipsychipsy Posts: 287member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by d4NjvRzf View Post


     The issue is not "openness" (a vague term I dislike using) but rather the fact that the system is designed like a handheld computer. It shares several fundamental features with OS X like seamless inter-app communication, itemized sandbox permissions (OS X 10.7+), and the ability to install software from anywhere (though not by default, much like how OS X's Gatekeeper only allows App store software by default). You don't install programs willy-nilly on your Mac despite it letting you do so. The same considerations apply to android.  Neither platform will stop you from facing the consequences should you choose to invite risk, but they both warn you along the way. OS X throws up a warning when you set Gatekeeper to allow non-app store software, and similarly for android.



    That's actually a great explanation.


     


    Quote:

    Originally Posted by d4NjvRzf View Post


     Neither platform will stop you from facing the consequences should you choose to invite risk, but they both warn you along the way.



     


    This indeed seems to be the bottom line.


     


    Still looking forward to seeing Android implementing a Mandatory Access Control mechanism like iOS uses (and it looks like it's coming). I am especially looking forward to App Opps (present in 4.3 but still hidden for the moment). http://www.androidpolice.com/2013/07/25/app-ops-android-4-3s-hidden-app-permission-manager-control-permissions-for-individual-apps/


    This should give people even more control over App permissions. It seems like a practical application for the control of SELinux (SEAndroid) policies.


    Also interesting is that SELinux Mandatory Access Control should even work with applications that run root and use superuser identity.

  • Reply 57 of 85
    maestro64maestro64 Posts: 5,043member


    Android is creating another market segment like the PC did in the 90's when connected to the internet. We will now have antivirus programs for mobile phones and a group of people in your small towns who you will need to pay to keep your phone from sending sexting messages to your entire contact list.

  • Reply 58 of 85
    droidftwdroidftw Posts: 1,009member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by anantksundaram View Post


    As of this time -- two hours after it has been posted on AI -- there's not a peep about this on news.google.com. Not even in their 'Technology' section!


     


    Hello?!



     


    Major news outlets are reporting it today.


     


    http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-23863495


     


    http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/08/27/net-us-android-security-idUSBRE97Q15Z20130827

  • Reply 59 of 85
    gatorguygatorguy Posts: 24,206member
    Symantec is out today with it's 2013 report on internet security. Some scare-ware comments in there to get folks to rush out and buy malware protection (ie, "This isn’t to say that Macs are a safer alternative to PCs; as we’ve seen, they’re just as susceptible to attacks" :\), but a lot of interesting stats and projections for those that follow that stuff.

    http://www.symantec.com/content/en/us/enterprise/other_resources/b-istr_main_report_v18_2012_21291018.en-us.pdf
  • Reply 60 of 85
    MarvinMarvin Posts: 15,317moderator
    gatorguy wrote: »
    Symantec is out today with it's 2013 report on internet security. Some scare-ware comments in there to get folks to rush out and buy malware protection (ie, "This isn’t to say that Macs are a safer alternative to PCs; as we’ve seen, they’re just as susceptible to attacks" :\), but a lot of interesting stats and projections for those that follow that stuff.

    http://www.symantec.com/content/en/us/enterprise/other_resources/b-istr_main_report_v18_2012_21291018.en-us.pdf

    I don't know why they put in statements like:

    "Android has a 72 percent market share with Apple® iOS a distant second with 14 percent, according to Gartner. As a result of its market share and more open development environment, Android is the main target for mobile threats."

    to even suggest that security by obscurity is a factor here. Android is on 900 million devices (maybe 1b by now) and iOS is on 600 million. It's not 72% vs 14%. They even note that iOS had 387 reported vulnerabilities vs 13 on Android, which is really bad. It shows that in spite of the high iOS marketshare and vulnerabilities, Apple's strategy of using a curated App Store as the sole provider for apps and shipping iOS with its security design is offering better protection to mobile users.
Sign In or Register to comment.