Top mobile security threats include app collusion and ransomware

mobile security threats

Intel Security has released the results of its latest data analysis and has revealed the leading problems.

Intel Security data has revealed the leading mobile security threats. Mobile app collusion, ransomware and the Pinkslipbot Trojan are among the top cybersecurity problems. These threats have been growing especially quickly over the last quarter.

Ransomware has been spending a great deal of time within the media spotlight over the last short while.

The recent McAfee Labs Threats Report: June 2016 showed that there was a 24 percent rise in ransomeware samples. That report measured the increase over the most recent quarter. Unethical individuals can create ransomware mobile security threats are particularly easily. They do not take especially high skills to build.

In fact, many ransomware attacks are as simple to perpetrate as gaining access to a malware’s exploit kit. Because of this, there has been a building cybercrime community focused on those attacks, said Intel Security.

Both desktop and mobile security threats continue to grow at a staggering rate.

mobile security threatsJust as mobile security problems are growing, it has not diminished those attacking desktops and laptops. The W32/Pinkslipbot Trojan worm has recently made a return as a threat. That backdoor Trojan first made it into the spotlight in 2007. It is a worm that can glean sensitive data such as signing certificates, email passwords and even financial information. McAfee Labs has received 4,200 unique Pinkslipbot binaries since December 2015. Those were mainly from the United States, the United Kingdom and Canada. It has the third highest infection rate (3.6 percent).

Mobile app collusion occurs when cybercriminals tweak two or more applications in order to conduct a malicious attack. These attacks can reveal user data and files and can send fake texts. That said, they can also load more apps without the consent of the user and can send user location data.

Intel Security said that this form of mobile security threats makes up an “emerging new attack method.” It went on to point out that the technique can lead to financial theft, service misuse and information theft. The company has tracked more than 5,000 forms of mobile app collusion among 21 applications. This, according to Intel Security Senior Director of Strategic Solutions, Barbara Kay.

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