Is it possible to get a virus from surfing the Internet like a regular computer on my smartphone?

 

I was doing some research on local computer repair shops when I ran across this article by Ken of Data DR.s, a local and national Franchise Computer Repair business, – many of us are now using these Smart Phones and this seems like an excellent question – some of us might have about our phones.  So read on to see if your Smart Phone is as Dumb as our computers?

Answer

Thanks again to Data DR.s for today’s Simply Seniors Computer Tutor blog.  This question was answered on September 17, 2010. Much of the information contained herein may have changed since posting.

The amount of new ‘malware’ (malicious software) that is being written to infect computers that are on the Internet continues to grow at a fever pitch.

Most of the really sophisticated malware is written by organized crime syndicates around the world that have plenty of resources and a really big motivator: your identity.

A recent study shows that if you search for entertainment sites (music, video, games, software, etc.) and include the word ‘free’, your chances of coming across a malicious website goes up exponentially; in some cases 300%!

Additionally popular items like ringtones, wallpaper and screensavers have traditionally been big targets of the malware producers, so be careful what you search for!

When it comes to your question about smartphone vulnerabilities, if you’re referring to the common ‘drive-by download’ attack that silently slips malicious programs into your computer when you visit a rogue website, the answer (for time being) is no.

As of this writing, browser-based attacks on smartphones are generally in the ‘proof of concept’ stage, meaning that researchers are finding theoretical possibilities, but nothing substantial exists in the wild.

There is a new vulnerability that was recently discovered for Adobe’s Flash player, which runs on desktop operating systems like Windows, Mac and Linux, but the latest Android operating system (2.2) has some exposure to this exploit (the first of its kind, since most smartphones can’t run Flash).

At this point in time, it’s actually safer to use your smartphone for accessing web content, especially the fringe content that is highly targeted for desktop computers, but that’s likely to change over time.

With the popularity of smartphones on the rise, worldwide, be assured that this is an area that the malware coders are focusing on for future attacks.

The real concern for smartphone users for now are downloadable applications that can contain malware or silently access private information on your phone (contacts, e-mails, etc.) and upload it to a remote server.

Smartphone makers do their best to police rogue applications in their various app delivery systems, but they have had apps (only a handful of the hundreds of thousands) get into their systems that snuck past the security tests and were later pulled from their app stores.

Those that bypass the controls put in place by smartphone manufacturers (called jailbreaking) so they can override the system and install un-authorized applications will be the ones at greatest risk going forward.

With no orchestrated screening process for those that install apps outside of the system, malware producers will continue to experiment on those willing to take the risk.

Google’s Android platform is both open and gaining a lot of users, so it’s likely we will continue to see more of the malicious activity aimed at this emerging and more accessible group of smartphone users.

One of the side-benefits to only getting applications from the authorized sources is that the vetting process (especially for Apple’s App Store) is pretty rigid and the likelihood of a malicious program getting onto your phone is very low.

As the capabilities of what a smartphone (and now tablets like the iPad) can do increase, so likely will the risks in using those features (the current Flash issue is a good example) so keep your guard up and stay tuned.

Simply Seniors Computer Tutor can help with your Smart Phone questions as well!  Learn how to sync your Smart Phone to your computer.  Call today for more information 321-431-3866.  Servicing senior citizens  technological needs since 2002!

Thanks again to the really smart people over at Data Dr.s who wrote today’s technical tips.  This was originally posted by Ken of Data Doctors on September 17, 2010 on their web site.