2012: a year of Android threats
According to computer security firm Kaspersky Lab, malicious Android threats peaked in June 2012 when the group identified almost 7,000 malicious Android programs.
During 2011, Kaspersky Lab says it witnessed an explosion in the number of malicious threats targeting the Android platform. The group predicted that the number of threats for Android would continue to grow at an alarming rate – which has turned out to be true in 2012.
“The number of samples we received continued to grow and peaked in June 2012, when we identified almost 7,000 malicious Android programs.”
“Overall, in 2012, we identified more than 35,000 malicious Android programs, which is about six times more than in 2011. That’s also about five times more than all the malicious Android samples we’ve received since 2005 altogether,” it said.
The reason for the huge growth of Android can be explained by two factors: economic and platform related.
“First of all, the Android platform itself has become incredibly popular, becoming the most widespread OS for new phones, with over 70% market share.”
“Secondly, the open nature of the operating system, the ease with which apps can be created and the wide variety of (unofficial) application markets have combined to shine a negative spotlight on the security posture of the Android platform,” Kaspersky said.
Looking forward, the group says that there is no doubt this trend will continue, just like it did with Windows malware many years ago. “We are therefore expecting 2013 to be filled with targeted attacks against Android users, zero-days and data leaks,” it said.
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