The Eight Riskiest Mobile Devices In Need of Protection
Android DevicesAndroid’s open source software is something that gives the platform great appeal, but it is also the basis of its vulnerability. Users may enjoy the freedom to acquire apps both inside and outside the Android Market, but it doesn’t come without risk. –Troy Gill, security analyst for AppRiver
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Symbian DevicesMost of the recent mobile malware has focused on Android and Symbian devices. Mobile-targeted malware is rising steadily. Cybercriminals are opportunistic and flock to systems and platforms that offer low security barriers coupled with a high potential for reward. Mobile is a prime target.–Amit Sinha, CTO of Zscaler
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iPadsiPads pose the worst risk as far as data leakage in concerned since they are mainly used for consumption of enterprise information in various form of documents. This sensitive info is not properly encrypted, and is rarely confined to the device– it can be easily forwarded to a private account and out of the control of the enterprise.–Guy Levy-Yurista, vice president of product and development for AirPatrol, Inc.
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Blackberry DevicesBlackberry (service’s) publicized frequent outages may not affect security, per se, but does compromise productivity. Furthermore, (Research in Motion) has discovered that vulnerabilities exist in how the BlackBerry MDS Connection Service and the BlackBerry Messaging Agent process PNG and TIFF images for rendering on the BlackBerry smartphone.–Nathan J. Lugo-Montanez, consultant for Deft Security Consultants
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Jailbroken SmartphonesA mobile device that has been jailbroken is one that’s had its safety net removed. The makers of these devices are doing the best job of making truly safe systems, and jail breaking them makes them vulnerable.–Jon Callas, CTO for Entrust
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LaptopsClearly the most targeted mobile device is still the laptop itself. Almost a full quarter of all the records reported breached by Health and Human Services under the HITECH Act are as a result of lost or stolen laptops. -Geoff Webb, senior product marketing manager for Credant Technologies
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USB Thumb DriveHumble thumb drive(s) are so ubiquitous we rarely give them any thought at all, yet with storage capacities in the tens of gigabytes they are a major problem. There have been a number of very significant breaches in the headlines this year as a result of thumb drives carrying unencrypted information being lost or stolen, and those are only the cases that are discovered and reported.–Geoff Webb, senior product marketing manager for Credant Technologies
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Anything running Flash or PDFvAnything running Flash or PDF. While Windows may be the most hacked OS, the primary vectors for hacking Windows has been through PDF or Flash. They are the holes in the safety net. Microsoft has assiduously updated their system, but these content delivery systems remain the largest vulnerability on any OS. –Jon Callas, CTO for Entrust