At the end of January 2014, Kaspersky Lab had recorded approximately 200,000 unique mobile malware samples , 34% more than in November 2013, when over 148,000 samples were detected.
Fraudsters continue to focus their attention on Android mobile devices . For example, the company's research revealed that malicious Android apps reached the 10 million milestone in January.
As of January 30, 2014, 1,103,104 applications were available in the official Google Play .[1] Unofficial, alternative stores have many more.
In most cases, malware aims to extract financial information from users. For example, this was the case with the mobile version of the Trojan Carberp, which originated in Russia.
This software steals user data as it is transferred to a bank's server . According to Kaspersky Lab experts, most malicious Android apps are currently developed in Russia.
To prevent the “infection» from malicious software, experts advise users:
- Do not enable the “developer mode” on the device
- Do not enable the option «Install apps from third‑party sources»
- Install apps only from official channels
- When installing new apps, read carefully what access permissions the apps request
- Use security software
More information is available in the report Mobile threats in 2013.
[1] According to www.appbrain.com/stats/number-of-android-apps
Source: e-pcmag.gr
