Just like computers, smartphones have their security flaws.
There have been many examples of Android breaches, with the Kapersky
Security Bulletinproviding the recent example of the Android version of
the Pegasus mobile espionage software, known as Chrysaor.
While the consensus is that Apple’s
iOS is more secure than Google’s Android OS, all phones remain
vulnerable to the latest chip vulnerability to be exposed: Spectre.
Additionally, in September alone last year Sophos Labs found that more
than 30% of the ransomware it identified was on the Android platform,
and there are an estimated 10 million Android apps that are categorized
as ‘suspicious.
Given the rise of mobile malware, users need to be constantly vigilant
and make sure that their phones are secure, and here are six ways you
can do that.
1. Lock your phone:
Enabling a phone to lock itself when not used for a short period is a
cornerstone of keeping the device secure. When the phone is locked, it
prevents others getting access to the device, and all of its data data
and apps.
While years ago locking your phone was a bit of a pain, modern
smartphones offer a variety of unlock options, including fingerprint
sensors and facial recognition, so you no longer have the excuse that
it’s inconvenient to have to unlock the phone when you want to use it.
When
you configure the lock settings you can specify the number of minutes
before your phone locks, so specify a short interval of only a few
minutes to make sure an unattended phone is locked down if found. The
phone should also default to the lock screen after a restart, and
require a PIN, not a fingerprint or other less secure shortcut, for the
initial unlock to offer a higher level of security.
2. Keep the OS up to date:
Android users continue to face the fragmentation of their OS. The most
common version of Android in use as of February 2018 is Nougat (7.0,
7.1), with a 28.5% market share, but only 1.1% of Android phone users
are running the latest version, Oreo (8.0, 8.1), while the five-year-old
KitKat (4.4) still soldiers on with 12% of the market, according
to Fossbytes.
The situation is better, but far from perfect, in the Apple camp.
While the latest version of iOS, 11.2, does have the highest market
share at 70%, there’s a persistent minority of users still on earlier
versions, such as the 10.1% who are on version 10.3, which is
approaching a year old and doesn’t offer all the latest security
updates.
Android users continue to be quagmired between phone
manufacturers not releasing the latest updates for their handsets, and
then carriers not rolling them out, leaving users potentially vulnerable
to new threats, a situation that Google is seeking to address with its
latest attempt to facilitate Android updates, Project Treble.
Our
recommendation would be that if your phone is no longer being updated,
then it’s time to start shopping for a new one. When looking for a new
smartphone, in addition to other features, look for a phone that’s
likely to receive updates over the long term. This makes an argument for
choosing a more popular flagship that’s more likely to get plenty of
update love over its lifetime, or a Google Pixel phone that will be well
supported with updates.
3. Avoid insecure brands:
Some phones have a reputation for receiving more frequent updates, such
as the aforementioned Google Pixel line, and Apple iPhones that continue
to get updates for several years. However, with other smartphones it’s
quite the opposite.
In February the issue of phone security reached the level of a
congressional hearing in the US, with intelligence officials warning
that phones from Chinese manufacturers Huawei and ZTE should be
considered insecure, and going so far as to accuse these phones
of spying on US citizens. And last year budget phones from Blu were
pulled from Amazon due to privacy concerns.
In general, sticking
to more mainstream brands that have a high profile in the market, rather
than second- or third-tier products, is the safer choice.
4. Encryption:
With all the data that’s on your smartphone – emails, contacts,
financial apps and more – it goes without saying that if the phone is
lost or stolen you don’t want a crook gaining access to it. The solution
is to encrypt the phone’s storage, so that if it falls into someone
else’s hands the data is protected.
Thankfully, setting up encryption is pretty simple – just follow our handy guide.
5. Scan for viruses:
Mobile devices are increasingly susceptible to malware, including
ransomware. Even the Google Play Store continues to be plagued with
malware, with unreputable programs attracting an astonishing 4.2
million downloads, including the ExpensiveWall hack that masqueraded as a
wallpaper app. The solution, just as when downloading software to a
laptop or PC, is to be wary of downloads from less mainstream vendors
and unverified sources, and to scan periodically for viruses and
malware.
While Windows desktop operating systems come with Windows
Defender to guard against malware, mobile platforms don’t yet have a
default antivirus program. The easy fix is to download and install an
anti-malware app, and we have recommended choices from reputable vendors
for both iOS and Android.
6. Don’t jailbreak your phone:
A subsection of iPhone users have a reputation for ‘sticking it to
the man’ by jailbreaking their devices, believing that in order to get
the most from their phone they need to free it from Apple’s built-in
restrictions on which apps and extensions they can install. Android
users can do something similar, although the term here is to root the
device, rather than to jailbreak it.
The problem with doing either
is that it enables users to download unauthorized apps that may contain
malware. For example, back in 2015 the KeyRaidermalware that targeted
jailbroken iPhones, and resulted in 225,000 Apple accounts, including
passwords, being found on a server.
That attack, however, pales in
comparison to the more recent CopyCat malwarethat affected 14 million
Android devices, and even rooted eight million of them without the
owner’s knowledge. The source of the malware was popular apps downloaded
from sites other than the Google Play Store.
From a security
standpoint, the best practice is to not jailbreak your phone, and stick
with the original OS to avoid exposing the phones to malware and other
threats.
source
