Wireless and Mobile Device Security, 2nd Edition

Mobile Malware Defense

Malware and PUAs are not easily distinguishable. Therefore, the common advice to users is to run antimalware and antivirus software on their computers. So why aren’t these services standard on mobile devices?

The problem with antivirus and antimalware tools is that they have the same restrictions as any other application—they are restricted to their sandbox. Unfortunately, unless these services have privileged access, their usefulness is limited. Testing on some products found antivirus software for Android devices had a detection rate of less than 10 percent, and that versions for iOS and Windows Phone were merely placebos. The same holds true for antimalware apps—the strict application isolation that exists across all ...