By 
Not to miss a golden opportunity to knock Android, Apple marketing chief Phil Schiller tweeted a link to F Secure’s new report on Android security today. It was accompanied by the text, “Be safe out there.” Ouch, Phil. That really hurts.
If you’re not familiar with the contents of the report, it claims that Android malware is at all time high with 79 percent of all mobile threats targeting the platform. It’s the same rhetoric we have been sold for the past couple of years, little more than good advertising to sell mobile security software. Or a different brand of phone, in the case of Schiller.
Yes, Android is susceptible to malware. Yes, more of it is running around today than in the past. But the problem isn’t as widespread as Schiller would like users to believe. His advice is good, though. As long as users are “safe” about the way they use their devices, including what apps they download and install and where they obtain the apps, there is actually little need for concern. Take that part to heart, at least.
[via The Verge]
Duh.. look at dis. Dis is iPad. It is white like me..
Way to go! Resort to childish behavior instead of providing a lucid, intelligent debate.
and what exactly is your intelligent response other than to resort to calling him out? Anything lucid or intelligent to add? I didn’t think so. Enditallnow.
Really? You’re defending that? Wow!!
Its more intelligent than the ignorant statement above theirs. You just did the same thing you attacked them for. Hypocritical? Very.
And by posting your comment, you’re demonstrating even more ignorance and unintelligence!!
Oh…crap.
There’s a big difference in correcting ignorance and spreading it. [image: DISQUS]
Ryan O’Neill wrote, in response to Crimsonshadow774:
And by responding to that, you’re demonstrating even more ignorance and hypocritical-ness!!
Oh…crap.
Link to comment
I simply responding in the same kind as Schiller’s comment. I apologize if that was too difficult for you to recognize.
Ha! made my day.
I do all the things that should get me malware I side load apps every day never had a problem been using Android for almost 5 years now no problem
Yea. I’m sure most people have. I never met a person that had a virus on their Android device. =./
Lets look at some numbers, shall we? Android has around 75% market share. That means for every 1 iPhone in use in the world, there are 3 Android phones in use in the world. So if I (role-playing as a devious h@ck3r today) wanted to infect as many users as possible, do I design my malware for iOS, or Android? I have a potential 3x return if I target Android. This is why Windows malware is higher than OS X malware. It isn’t that OS X is more secure, it is that it is less utilized, and so, there’s lower returns on investment.
Phil Schiller can die in a fire for spreading FUD about something like this. He knows better.
Dude Mac OS is built on top of Unix. Less secure tell that to the hackers that actually hacks them. Google it.
Unix is not more secure than windows. There are just as many flaws in Unix as there are in Windows. The linux kernel just had two major vulnerabilities patched in the last 30 days, which shows this.
The reason why people *think* unix is more secure than windows, is because 1) the default configuration is in fact more secure (Windows has a plethora of things running at default, but most unix systems do not), as well as the fact that Windows has more users than unix does, so more attackers focus on exploiting windows as it’s more fruitful.
And for what it’s worth, I am somebody who exploits the security of Mac OS X, Windows, Linux, FreeBSD, and a number of other operating systems in his daily profession. It’s my job to know things like this.
Only reason Mac got beat in Pwn2Own was for a Safari exploit.
Droids tend to be paupers with no taste compared to iOS users. They want virtually everything to be free, so they tend to get monkey apps & malware in return….cant run away from the idiom ‘u always get what u pay for’. As a developer I make far more money on iOS even thogh their nos are relatively smaller. Also iOS devices generate far more online traffic cos their users are more likely to spend money & time online (many independent surveys & data have shown this) than Drioids scavenging for free stuff. So shouldnt iOS devices be targeted equally if not more by viruses since they are more heavily used online?
Not at all. Just because the user utilizes the device more doesn’t mean the device is not on-line just as often. For every 4 smartphones in active use in the world, 3 are android, and 1 is ios. (not counting phones running something else, of course). That’s active phones – not inactive phones. So all of these active phones have a network connection and *can* be used. This means that if I target Android with my malware, I can infect 3 times as many people as if I target iOS with my malware. The usage patterns of the actual devices means nothing to me – in fact, I might prefer a user who uses their phone a little bit less – they’re less likely to notice they’ve been hacked.
Only morons get infected. You have to be trying really hard to get a bad app. Just like the mac vs pc debate, all the malware isn’t made because its less secure. Its because so many more people use android.
Marketing B*tch.
Creates a proxy-analyst “F Secure”, hypes its report via its news sources like Mashable, Verge and ZDnet/Cnet and tweets a link to its report!
Android = #1.
WOW!
This guy is a Computer illiterate Moron.
This guy has obviously never held a Nexus 4 before
Android is not susceptible to the largest piece of malware out there… IOS
Hey Schiller, what do you think about this: http://news.yahoo.com/study-free-ios-apps-leak-more-user-data-183503318.html So much for iOS’ so-called “security”.
Email sent to Phil Schiller with the link to the article referenced in the comments about how free ios apps are more dangerous than Android free apps. Be in the know, and hey, be safe out there Phil!
Been with Android since the Nexus One, have had just about every high end device out there, rooted just about all of them and must say NEVER downloaded any malware or bad app. Keep trying Apple, maybe spend some of your big $$$ on some innovation instead of litigation and you may get that stock to rise. See you in the rear view mirror, way back there.
Shiller’s father should of worn a condom and we would of been spared a prick.
that guy is a moron so is 99 % of IOS users out there. thats why they made iphones. for people like him.
I’ve been an Android user since 09, I’ve owned 7 Android devices in this time and I’ve NEVER once had malware on any of them.
That’s because you’re the malware….. on Mother Earth. 7 phones in ~4 years? Really? That means you put about 3 times more phones in a landfill than normal. Slow your consumerism down cowboy. /halfjoking :)
Hahaha I’m addicted to phones. (Two of those devices were tablets though.) And to be honest, most of the phones were purchased slightly used.
okok… I’ll let you off with a warning this time.
Which phone do you own now?
Verizon GS3.
The only reason why Android can get affected is because it’s like a Windows computer. A lot of people are using it and you can install whatever you want since a lot of programs are made for it and you have access to certain files that you don’t on locked-down OS’s.
That is the same argument they try to use for windows when trying to sell macs so it doesn’t surprise me
4 years with an android phone, and no malware yet (touch wood). It’s all down to sensible use, and some of the mass market just isn’t quite up to that unfortunately… It’s a drawback of being open and having freedom, anything possible, be it good or bad. Once again, Apple want people living in a pristine bubble controlled by a system they command, and don’t want anything coming in that could harm little Timmy/Tina’s fragile mind.
Android on the other hand simply says ‘you’re not going to grow up until you can learn from your own damn mistakes’
touch wood lol
Seems like ios/Apple/iphone fade out FASTER than Apple expected and loses marketshare if Schiller dept needs:
1) hype-news that Galaxy Note II lockscreen bug
2) hype-news that Galaxy SIII lockscreen bug
3) additional news about Galaxy lockscreen bug that it’s Android-wide bug
4) FUD-news from antivirus company F Secure that Android accounts for 79% of malware. What malware? Where malware? Examples? Videos? CHINA-only?
5) distorted news that Apple was #1 smartphone manufacturer (Foxconn) in Q4 2012: SAMSUNG sold 65 million smartphones and was #1 smartphone MANUFACTURER.
6) Schiller’s tweet about F secure “report”.
Calm down dude.
SAMSUNG will not sell your company its INNOVATIONS.
Google will kill all your core apps using innovations.
when banks, businesses, and the government start running 90% of their computer infrastructure on the apple platform then you’ll start seeing the apple platform riddled with malware and viruses.
apple is hardly invincible, they’re just not a target.
I have never once had a problem on any if my Android phones.
I have still yet to find any trace of malware on any of the the devices I have had and bought in the last few years…. My Family has a Note 2 a Gs3 I have a N4 and HTC One S Had a HTC Sensation, Had A SK4G Before that my family also had a MT4G a LG MyTouch, The regular MyTouch and a Behold 2!, Thats Not all My cousins have had a Droid Original A Droid 4 An Evo 4g Lte, Droid X2…. NOT ANY ONE OF THOSE DEVICES HAVE EVER HAD ISSUES WITH MALWARE!
Funny, F-secure uses less than android 2.x to find these “issues” also that a lot of what they find to be malware isn’t actually malware but just has the capability to allow for it by means of the wrong person making use of said feature but hasn’t been recorded as such. Any apps they have noted were apps that if you use common sense and read what you download whether from GPlay or outside sources can be easily avoided. Antivirus company scare tactics. DO NOT DOWNLOAD ANTIVIRUS NOR MALWARE PROTECTION PROGRAMS DO NOT FUND THE PEOPLE WHO PUT IT ON ANDROID IN THE FIRST PLACE!
Btw, well written, Kevin.
This might be just because Apple is feeling Android’s pinch!!!
Let’s see, I have had 7 android devices (still have some of them). Never had a virus issue. I do not know of anyone who have either.
isn’t schiller the apple marketing genius who replied ” its aluminum stupid, thats what aluminum does” in response to complaints that the black paint was falling off the iphone 5 right from the factory …..oh yes a true marketing guru. the other apple marketing guru, johnson has currently run jc penney share price down 80 percent so far….apple marketing geniuses.
any malware attacking ios would have to be prehistoric.
I guess this is the 4-month-in-the-making response to “Don’t drive off a cliff out there…”