2014 was a big year for the security industry and a busy one for AVG. There were high profile security breaches, some incredible new apps for our smartphones and huge game releases that pushed the performance of our devices to the limit.
Threats:
Heartbleed was arguably the most significant security story of the year after a crucial vulnerability was found in Open SSL, the technology used to encrypt data online. Potentially, OpenSSL estimate that as many as 66% of all websites were vulnerable.
Our blog post on how to stay safe from Heartbleed was our most popular post of the year and a follow up post later in June showing that many websites were still vulnerable comes in at number two.
One of the year’s most prevalent malware breakouts, known as GameOver Zeus was also amongst our top stories. GameOver Zeus picked up a lot of media coverage as experts gave a two week countdown until a massive suspected cyber-attack would be unleashed.
Mobile:
AVG had a big year for mobile with exclusive deals to protect Sony Xperia devices and we even created custom apps specifically designed for the Amazon Fire Phone’s ‘Dynamic Perspective’.
We also sealed the acquisition of Location Labs which has brought powerful security and device management features to millions of people.
In November, we release our first ever Android App Performance Report which detailed the secret ways that the apps we use can affect our smartphones. How much space they take up, how much battery they use and how much data they send.
Gaming:
Gaming also enjoyed a big year in 2014 with the release of many big name titles including Watch Dogs, where you play a hacker in a beautifully rendered open world. Our performance expert Sandro Villinger’s Ultimate Watch Dogs performance guide for the PC was our third most popular post this year.
Sandro also created a simple nine step guide to maximizing PC gaming performance which helped users of all abilities squeeze the most out their machines whether top of the range or 3 years old!
If you are a gamer, check out Sandro’s Ultimate performance guide to
Gaming looks set to have another big year in 2015, keep an eye out for Sandro’s GTA 5 performance review coming soon!
2014 was a great year at AVG and we’re looking forward to bringing you more big stories in 2015.
Happy New Year!
