Android phones more vulnerable to hacking than iPhones

Most of us in this modern day and age have cell phones. Some prefer Android, while others prefer Apple iPhone.

But, did you ever wonder which one is more vulnerable to viruses and hacking?

According to research, it might be the Android. A spokesperson from Radio Shack in Coldwater said that new forms of viruses are being sent through MMS messages and picture links. Motorola and Nexus are more protected than some of the lesser-known Android models, but research has shown that Android is still more vulnerable than iPhone.

According to a study by the University of Cambridge, 87 percent of Android devices are vulnerable to malware. The study — which was partly funded by Google — looked into the phones of 20,000 Android users who had installed the Device Analyzer app, which can be purchased from the Google PlayStore. Researchers at Check Point Software Technologies identified a flaw in Android phones that could enable hackers to take control over devices remotely, which would essentially turn a phone into a spying device.

To protect yourself, it is recommended that Android consumers only install apps directly from Google PlayStore, since it performs additional safety checks on apps.

"Unfortunately, Google can only do so much, and recent Android security problems have shown that this is not enough to protect users," one of the study's authors, Alastair R. Beresford, said.

"Devices require updates from manufacturers, and the majority of devices aren't getting them," Beresford added.

International Business Times reported that a malicious new piece of malware, targeted at Android smart phones, appeared in China. The malware, dubbed “Geinimi” based on its first-known incarnation, is a Trojan that can compromise a significant amount of personal data on a user’s phone and send it to remote servers.

The most sophisticated Android malware seen to date, Geinimi is also the first Android malware in the wild that displays botnet-like capabilities. Once the malware is installed on a user’s phone, it has the potential to receive commands from a remote server that allows the owner of that server to control the phone.

According to the chief of an unmentioned security firm, Android phones and other mobile devices are more vulnerable to hackers than iPhones because of Google's open-source policy in apps development.

"The basic difference between Google's Android software for mobile devices and Apple's iOS software, is that Apple follows a stricter process of apps while Android, which is free, allows developers a free hand in making apps," Steve Chang, chairman of Trend Micro Inc., said.

Chang said that while it is almost impossible for certain viruses to intrude into iPhone, this was not the case with Android devices.

"Apple has a sandbox concept that isolates the platform, which prevents certain viruses that want to replicate themselves or decompose and recompose to avoid virus scanners," Chang explained.