Mobile malware keeps growing. In the last year, banking trojans specific to devices have shot up by 56%, according to a study by security company Kaspersky.
Malware is not just about computers. We’re not only talking about computer viruses, but about all kinds of malicious programs.
Mobile phones are a source of infection that is becoming more common among cybercriminals. This is logical if we are aware that the tendency of users is to increasingly use these devices to the detriment of computers.
According to a study by security firm Kaspersky Lab, within mobile malware, bank Trojans have increased their presence by a significant 58% in the last quarter.
A bank Trojan is a type of malicious program prepared to enter a device unnoticed and steal payment data, funds from accounts or bank credentials. Their way of acting is usually to impersonate a legitimate banking application. In this way, when the victims log in, they enter the data, which is stolen by the attackers.
How to prevent mobile malware?
To prevent mobile malware infections we must protect the device against malicious programs. To do this, follow the same procedure as with a computer: install an antivirus.
We do not have to use a premium one. The important thing is to use one that works and is updated. There are many mobile antivirus that can be useful, but to in order to make it easier to choose one that is really safe, one can resort to the tools recommended by the Internet Security Office.
By having an updated antivirus we can avoid many malware infections. However, we also have to protect our own actions. How? Using common sense. We can also be guided by this set of tips:
- Download applications only from official stores. The .apk files you find on the Internet may be infected and you could be helping a Trojan to enter your mobile. This is especially true for ‘mods’. That is, apps modified to get premium features without paying.
- Check the reputation, comments and permissions of the application. It is important to keep this in mind because sometimes we download applications that ask for access to parts of the phone they do not need to work. You have to ask yourself, for example: Do you really need a flashlight to access the microphone or the Wi-Fi network? The answer is no, you only need access to the camera to turn on the flash.
- Do not connect your mobile to public USB connections. You never know if they might be compromised. It is preferable to run out of battery than to infect the device with malware.
- Do not connect your mobile to public Wi-Fi networks. Public Wi-Fi hotspots (cafeterias, hotels, airports) may not be configured securely. This could cause an attacker to connect to the same network and modify the traffic. This is known as a man-in-the-middle attack and could cause the bad guy to redirect you to an application store that he actually controls himself, in order for you to download a Trojan. With the pages you visit the same thing could happen, you would be entering your data in a false page created by the cybercriminal.
As you can see, it is not about protecting the device with technical methods that we do not understand, but about making safe habits. If we follow these tips, we will considerably reduce the possibility of our cell phone becoming infected with some type of malware.