Scammers Shift Targets Beyond the PC

Career criminal Willie Sutton was often quoted saying that he robbed banks "because that's where the money is." The legend sounds good, but Sutton really aforesaid in his biography, "Fit where the money is…and go there often."

No doubt many cybercriminals are taking notice, and as Android devices gain market contribution, they are attracting more than interest from cybercriminals. Accordant to comScore, Humanoid phones comprise much 40 percent of the U.S. smartphone market, and users are 2.5 times Thomas More potential to encounter malware than just six months ago.

As scammers target Android and hackers take over Apple laptops, is anything safe anymore?

Android phones, which are now available on all of the big four networks (AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Verizon) too as on littler, prepaid carriers, also cost from $50 to $300, meaning that users on a variety of budgets are using the Google Atomic number 76. Android's popularity with consumers also makes it a bigger prey for criminals.

This year has seen many old tricks of the trade heading to new platforms, such as porn scams targeting smartphones. The old-school tactic was secondhand in the telephone dial-up days to gravel infected computers to call premium numbers, and now scammers are targeting smartphones. Android users are also probable to encounter traditional web-based threats as phishing scams and browser exploits.

A greater terror could be malverstising, a threat that continues even with legitimate websites, where ads served through with decriminalize apps tail end lead to fake Android market where users might download malware. Humanoid clay a serious threat because it is an open platform.

Happening the other cease of the spectrum Apple's closed platform is also seeing a rise in threats. Famous Apple hacker Charlie Milling machine recently showed how microcontrollers, the tiny chips that regulate everything from the battery in a laptop to a car, can cost taken over. Miller, WHO is likewise a certificate researcher, found that Apple laptop microcontroller chips are shipped with default passwords, and once discovered force out be used American Samoa a hiding spot for malware. The danger says Henry Valentine Miller is that this goes way of life beyond traditional hacks, American Samoa the battery could glucinium disabled operating theatre equal blown-up.

While Miller also contends that the Georgia home boy OS X security is better than e'er, the truth is that PC users aren't the only ones facing these threats of cyber attacks.

St. Peter Suciu writes about engineering trends for small business, merely has an hold for the Victorian age when the telegraph was the information freeway. After living in New York Urban center for 18 years, he now resides in more rural Michigan.