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Wednesday, May 23, 2012

McAfee records a big jump in Android malware

Online security company McAfee has just published its Threats Report for the first quarter of 2012, which was a record quarter for mobile and PC-based malware.

However, the company notes that its ability to detect and collect mobile malware has also improved significantly. Over 8,000 separate pieces of mobile malware are in the McAfee database, with almost 7,000 targeted at Android devices. That’s a 1200% increase from the previous quarter.

Most Android malware is coming from third-party application markets. The company is advising customers to install software only from the official ‘Google Play’ market to reduce the security risks.

Vincent Weafer, senior vice president of McAfee Labs, said “The same skills and techniques that were sharpened on the PC platform are increasingly being extended to other platforms, such as mobile and Mac; and as more homes and businesses use these platforms the attacks will spread, which is why all users, no matter their platforms, should take security and online safety precautions.”

When it comes to PCs, McAfee recorded 8 million new malware samples during the quarter, giving it a total of 83 million pieces of malware in its database.

[Report (pdf)]

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