Armor for Android is continually evaluating the Android malware landscape and the second edition the monthly Android Malware Roundup has arrived
(PRWEB) March 03, 2014
Armor for Android is continually evaluating the Android malware landscape and the second edition the monthly Android Malware Roundup has arrived. February 2014 revealed malware targeting specific events online and in the real world. Android malware continues to develop characteristics that have previously been found in PC malware, and Facebook became one of the world’s largest purveyors of Android threats. The actual number of Android threat discovered may have been lower than previous months, but February was by no means a dull month for Android malware.
According to Armor for Android security expert James Green, “One of the most interesting trends we saw in February was a drop in daily threats detected after the 14th. Malware normally experiences a boom surrounding holidays, so we were very much surprised to see this decline in Android malware activity.” It appears that the obligations of Valentine’s Day are not lost on the inhabitants of the underworld.
Two events had the world buzzing in February, the Winter Olympics in Sochi Russia, and the removal of the overnight sensation Flappy Bird from all mobile app markets. Malware developers quickly saw an opportunity to develop and release malware that exploited the buzz surrounding each event. Flappy Bird took the world by storm and Flappy Bird malware caught countless victims in the frenzy. The U.S. Department of State was so strongly concerned about travelers attending the Olympics in Sochi that they released a travel guide outlining the virtual privacy and security issues that travelers might face while attending the games. Both events provided malware developers with an incredibly number of Android users to target.
Malware targeting Android users took two steps forward in February. The TOR (the onion router) network was turned against privacy advocates and used to host servers controlling Android malware. And Facebook’s advertising method was used to specifically target Android users with alarming efficiency.
February may have been slower in terms of the sheer number of malicious Android apps detected but that doesn’t mean it was uneventful. Android malware continues to develop in popularity and complexity.
To read the full analysis of Android malware for the month of February 2014 please visit: http://armorforandroid.kinja.com/android-malware-roundup-february-2014-1533841538.