Lookout Mobile Security recently published its mobile threat predictions for 2013, anticipating that 18 million Android users will encounter mobile malware between the beginning of 2012 and the end of 2013.
“The likelihood that new Lookout users will encounter malware or spyware is heavily dependent on their geography and behavior, varying from 0.20 percent in Japan to 0.40 percent in the US and as high as 34.7 percent in Russia,” notes Lookout’s Derek Halliday.
“Toll fraud — malware that charges money to a user’s mobile phone bill — emerged as a major threat in 2012, Lookout notes: 72 percent of the malware it detected was classified as toll fraud malware,” writes FierceMobileContent’s Jason Ankeny. “The firm expects toll fraud to cause even bigger headaches in 2013, anticipating that premium SMS protections baked into the new Android 4.2 will not experience significant market penetration until late next year.”
“A number of other threats will target users far more frequently: Lost and stolen devices will cost U.S. consumers $30 billion in 2012, and nearly 40 percent of users will have to deal with a malicious link, the company estimated,” writes eWeek’s Robert Lemos. “In addition, software that uses advertising networks to aggressively collect information on users accounted for 5 percent of all downloads, the report stated.”
