Global News

Friday December 31, 2010

For those who don't know the Android OS runs on Linux, thus making it a small computer. Computers are prone to virus attacks, especially as they become more and more popular. As the Android market continues to grow, it's no wonder why hackers are taking aim at Android devices.

Google allows anyone to download, view and even edit their OS. This is a great feature for those who use it correctly. It allows apps to be built around the OS instead of on top of it like almost every other cell phone. However when you have a few people who use it incorrectly, it could be dangerous.

That's exactly what happened in China as a team of hackers created a virus that will capture your data and send it off to remote servers. No one is sure what will be done with the data, but they do know it's being stored if you have this virus on your device.

The good news is though that you're probably not infected. The virus is being attached in 3rd party apps outside of the Google Market. These apps appear to be legit and will download / run fine, but will be capturing your personal data in the background.

To prevent this do not download 3rd party apps outside of Google's Market! If you still don't feel safe there is an app called "Antivirus Free" by Creative Apps. This app will scan your currently installed apps to check for any issues. You can also set it to run all the time and it will do checks every now and then to make sure nothing malicious has been installed.