Tag Archives: Mobile

AVG

iOS users facing new storage challenges

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News emerged recently that Apple has been challenged about storage on their iOS devices.

According to news sources, Apple has come under fire for the size of their latest operating system iOS8 which can apparently occupy up to 23.1% of the devices total storage.

On top of this, the upgrade from iOS 7 to iOS 8 alone can take up more than 1.3 Gigabytes of storage space.

While the storage statistics for iOS 8 might be surprising, it’s important that iPhone and iPad users realize that often their storage can be taken up by multiple unnecessary files and not just operating system files.

Operating systems are not the only files that bloat and grow over time; in fact it’s quite common for updates to systematically increase an app’s footprint on our devices as new features and enhancements are added

That’s why it’s very important to regularly clean out your mobile device, get rid of unwanted or unneeded files and apps and create space for the things you really want.

To help you do this, AVG has developed iOS Cleaner as part of the AVG PC TuneUp performance suite. iOS Cleaner can help you reclaim back valuable storage space on your iPhone or iPad devices by locating and removing duplicate files and unnecessary clutter and temporary files.

We’ve also prepared this easy to follow guide to help you get started.

Title image courtesy of engadget

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AVG’s Top Blogs of 2014

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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!

AVG

The best mobile moments of 2014

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2014 has been a monumental year for technology, from drones becoming commonplace, to a landing on a comet, and the mobile industry is no exception.

Here are my favourite moments from the mobile world over the last 12 months:

 

That Oscars Selfie

The Oscars selfie has to go down as the tipping point in the phenomena that is ‘taking a selfie’, so much so, that it even (briefly) broke Twitter with over 3 million retweets.

While the word “selfie” was added to the Oxford English Dictionary back in August 2013, this was the year that the craze really went into full swing. For one thing, a “selfie stick” is now an actual thing. While some of us have ultimately found it painful to endure all the oversharing, the selfie even became a force for good.

Emma Watson’s ‘he for she’ campaign for gender equality was backed by some famous faces, including Russell Crowe, and how did they show their support, with a selfie, of course.

The highlight of my selfie calendar was however, this majestic photobomb, by none other that HRH Queen Elizabeth II.

 

 

Ice bucket challenge

Mobile sharing hit another high this year with the Ice Bucket Challenge, raising awareness and money for ALS the charity dedicated to fighting Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. Love it or hate it, the challenge, through the power of the humble mobile raised more than £2.7 million for the charity.

It went global and attracted some high profile participants. My favorite has to be this fantastic take on the challenge, by Bill Gates after being challenged by none other than Mark Zuckerberg.

Video

Bill Gates Ice Bucket Challenge

 

 

iPhone 6 

Then came the biggest news of the year, the launch of Apple’s iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. Rumors saw mega-fans waited outside stores a week before any official announcement had been made.  Charity Depaul even got in on the queuing action, by auctioning off their 5th place spot in the queue on London’s Regent Street on eBay for  £570, although one New Yorker reportedly sold their spot for a whopping $2500.

The iPhone 6 Plus has one of the largest smartphone screens on the market, bridging the ever narrowing gap between phones and tablets and joining a whole new world of “Phablets”.  With no signs pointing toward phones going back to their teeny tiny early noughties past, like “selfie”, “phablet” might find its way into the dictionary soon.

Image courtesy of trajectorypartnership.com

 

Uber

2014 was the year I finally saw the light and downloaded Uber. This clever cab calling service caused quite a stir when it went live in my home city of London. The city came to a standstill as drivers of London’s traditional black cab service went on strike with over 10,000 cab drivers bringing the city to a standstill by parking in Trafalgar square.

Image courtesy of Telegraph

 

While black cabs are as synonymous with London as red buses, I have to admit to being a total Uber convert. As someone who reluctantly and rarely booked taxis in the past, due mainly to the expense, Uber has come along and saved the day. Both in London and whilst travelling, I’ve used Uber to get to and from airports or get home on a night out, at a fraction of the price than I would normally expect. And it’s not just me who’s happy. While Uber may have its issues, the drivers I speak to seem genuinely enthused by the app. Many enjoy the freedom of working as much or as little as they want, or just earning extra money on the side.

 

Mobile Walking Lane

And finally, my favorite mobile moment of the year comes from the Chinese, who in 2014 introduced a mobile walking lane on the sidewalk. So you can now safely wobble along staring down at your mobile, at a luxurious pace, without getting in anyone’s way. I’ve long thought about campaigning for a “fast walkers lane” in London, so would be more than happy to see the slow walkers keeping to their side of the pavement!

Image courtesy of Mirror

AVG

Improve your smartphone battery life with smart profiles

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We’ve just released a new update to our AVG Cleaner for Android PRO.

In version 2.2.1 we’ve tweaked one of your favorite features, Battery Profiles, and now support Android L to help you clean up, speed up and especially boost battery life even better than before and on all the bleeding-edge devices out there.

 

So what’s new?

Despite that it started out as a cleaning app, we’ve made it a super-powerful tool to help you speed up and boost the battery life of your Android and even tell which apps drain your devices mobile data traffic, battery and storage. We’ve continued this tradition in our latest update even more.


Smarter Battery Savings with Battery Profiles

First and foremost, for the folks who love to improve battery life manually, we added a new button called “Choose Manual Settings” which puts you in charge of what features and built-in devices of your Android can drain your battery, such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Mobile Data or the automatic synchronization of your files:

As you can see, we’ve also added new “On/Off” buttons to make it more clear what’s enabled and what’s not – the green indicator now shows you exactly how much battery life you can save with each tweak.

Plus, there’s a new profile called “Low Battery” which is available in the PRO version and kicks in when battery life hits a certain threshold, such as “20%” (you have to run it once and then set it up):

That’s super important when you’re nowhere near a power outlet and the phone is running on fumes. It saved my digital life more than once…

Overall, we’ve also made the “Profiles” easier to set up. Once you select a profile for the first time, such as “Car” (for when you’re on the road), we’ll walk you through what conditions and settings you can set up. In the example of car, I set it up so that AVG Cleaner for Android always disables Wi-Fi, auto-sync, screen rotation and screen time-out whenever it’s connected to the Bluetooth of my car:

That’s because I don’t need any Wi-Fi in my car. Plus, I’m using the phone as my GPS so I don’t want the screen rotating randomly or turning itself off after a while.

Download AVG Cleaner for Android now.

AVG

How technology will change the way we behave in 2015

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As 2014 comes to an end, it is time to look ahead to 2015. This year though, rather than give my predictions about emerging technology, my mind is drawn to our behavior and the changing the way we actually interact with technology.

There are three areas in which I foresee the most change during 2015 thanks to increased public interest and acceptance:

 

We will start using privacy based solutions

The discussion about privacy; my right to be me and own my data has been gaining momentum in the last five years. We are rapidly losing control over our personal data and identities in today’s fast moving digital world. The advertising world collects ever more data to try and predict our needs based on who we are and our behavior. 2014 has shown us that our online identity isn’t safe from advertisers, hackers or even governments.

So the problem of who controls my identity becomes more and more interesting to the actual owners – each and every one of us. . Laws around how to keep and secure data, and restrictions about sharing it are on the way through movements like the Right to Be Forgotten.

In the passing year we have seen lots of solutions focusing on sharing using “Privacy by design” to be the key feature, apps like Snapchat , Whisper, Secret, Tinder, Tumblr, the Silent circle messaging and their Blackphone. These applications are chat, photo sharing and social media where the privacy and trust is built in.

So the market demand for privacy oriented solutions is there and the technology has existed for several years. The missing key ingredient that will drive it into the mass market is how business can make money from privacy. In the next year I expect to see more and more monetization concepts to make money from solutions that provide anonymity and privacy. The market demand is there and the technology is there…

 

 

We will fall in love with electronics (again)

Since the 90’s, the idea of a connected smart home has excited millions. The idea of an electric light that will turn on when you step in the room and you can close with a clap is not new. But it is only in the last year that the idea of Internet of Things has really started to be feasible.

The good news is that electronics are back and so is software. After all it is through software that we interact with devices and makes them seem exciting and new. Over the last 15 years we have tried to create value in software by adopting various business models. From the Freemium model, giving limited functionality and then charge when features are added through the models that monetize through Google Ads and search up to the SaaS models where it is not the software you pay for but a service that comes with it…

In 2014, we saw Fitbit emerge as a leading wearable device, and a big part of this is software that makes it seem very personal to every one of us. It was the same with the GoPRo camera – transferring a simple camera into high end extreme sports filming equipment. In 2015 I expect many devices will evolve to become connected and take on new roles in our digital world. Software will be an important factor in deciding which devices are successful, it’s through software that devices become personal and relatable.

 

 

We will search less and discover more

Since the beginning of the internet, search has taken a cardinal place in our interaction with data. First Yahoo and then Google made sure our homepage is a search page.

Microsoft went on and translated this behavior into the application on the PC, and now we have a search box almost in everything and everywhere…

With Adwords technology Google cracked the way to monetize search behavior. The search term that the user enters translated to ads that the user wants at that moment.

Smartphones arrived and quickly become a main vector for search, both of the Internet and of ever growing app stores. Importantly they also heralded the arrival voice recognition technologies and of voice search. But as technology advances there is a quest to predict the search. To analyze requests and behavior so that the information we seek is already there waiting for us. We can see it in action with programs like Google Now that collects information about you from a range of sources and tries to predict what you need, whether it’s directions to work, your flight times that day or what the weather will be like.

But in less obvious move, many successful mobile apps have removed the search field and actually providing people with suggestions or things to discover as a way increasing engagement as well as servicing and increasing the value of apps and services.

There are many examples of this discovery mechanic in online news where services like Outbrain and Tabula offer more content to people who read news, and monetize through pay-per-click

Other examples of discovery replacing search are popular apps like Instagram, Flipboard and Facebook where people are encouraged to roam and discover news, pictures or friends.

Perhaps the best example of this is Tinder where rather than searching for match, the app makes constant suggestions that the user accepts or rejects

 

I think in 2015 we will see this trend getting stronger and more apps and services will increase the promotion of content to their customers as a way to keep them interested in using the application or service.

 

AVG

Four trends that will change mobile in 2015

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In fact in the US mobile web traffic exceeded desktop web traffic for the first time. Mobile is fast becoming the most convenient and cost effective to way get online but what does the future hold for our smartphones?

Here are my predictions on how our mobile worlds will continue to evolve in 2015.

 

Apps will become the primary target for hackers

While the first generation of mobile threats was primarily using vectors and methods seen in the PC world, we are beginning to see new threats specifically designed to exploit mobile devices. The threats is not just malicious apps, but also regular apps that are vulnerable to attacks.

Until now, the centralized software distribution model seen with the AppStore and Google Play has helped protect our devices from malware. This concept came as a lesson we all learned from the PC, where software distribution is not controlled and so malware is common. Apps on official stores are less likely to be malicious, but it doesn’t mean they are not vulnerable to attacks.

Hackers love to find vulnerabilities. Almost every software program has vulnerabilities that are waiting to be discovered and mobile apps are not an exception. As official app stores make it difficult for hackers to directly upload malicious apps, they have instead begun hunting for vulnerable apps to attack.

Vulnerable Apps are not always removed from the App stores and as many have been left unmaintained by developers, creating an opportunity for hackers to exploit them.

 

New threats will emerge

As a result I expect to see a rise in the discovery of mobile app vulnerabilities during 2015. Here are a few examples:

  • Voice activation – Voice activated software is a standard feature on smartphones and are also appearing in smart TVs and other Internet-connected devices. However many of the implementations are vulnerable to voice activation attacks. This is because it does not authenticate the source of the voice – it could be you speaking, or equally it could be a synthesized voice coming out of an app – yes, even a game can play a sound an send an email to your contacts on your behalf.

Video

How Apps Could Hijack Google Now

 

  • Mobile browsers – For the average user, browsers on mobile are very difficult to operate. Small screens mean you see only a fraction of the URL, making it easy disguise a malicious URL. Drive-by infections, which are well known to PC users, will soon come to mobile users as well. Not surprising, mobile browsers are also vulnerable to JavaScript exploits that can be triggered by a hacker remotely. That could mean streaming video to or from a device, even if it is locked.
  • Radio-based threats (Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC) – mobile devices are constantly broadcasting over radio frequencies in order to connect and transfer data. Rough access points and over-the-air sniffers can capture transmitted data, reply with malicious content or even modify the values in the data over-the-air.
  • Masque Attacks and malicious Profiles – as mobile users have less visibility on the files being downloaded on the device, like the running processes and settings, hackers will continue to use these limitations to mislead the user to download and install malicious files to their devices from outside the Appstore. However apps on app store are also vulnerable and I predict the number of malware detections from recognized app stores to increase in 2015.

 

Data will become more valuable and more threatened

Mobile devices are much more personal than our PCs ever could be. The data on them is much more intimate and is a much more rewarding target for hackers. In 2015, I expect data, especially that held on our mobile devices, to come under much greater scrutiny.

In particular, I foresee three threats to our data in the coming year:

  • Physical tracking – criminals or law enforcement can use location data stored on your phone to identify important places (such as home or place of work), analyze behavior such as a daily route or absence from home.
  • Data stealing – in mobile, everything is broadcast through the air, that means data is vulnerable to being intercepted as it travels. Credentials, financials, transactions or payments can all be captured and recorded by 3rd
  • Commercial tracking – mainly done by retailers to better understand the behavior of their visitors. Think online analytics but for the physical world.

 

Payments will also go mobile

The public’s positive reception of Apple Pay heralded a new phase of consumer payment methodology. Although Apple is not the first to introduce mobile payment, their offering came at a good time and the implementation seems to be practical and secure.

As mobile payments are a new experience for consumers, I expect to see social engineering attacks where hackers will try to confuse and mislead in order to steal credentials and personal data. This is expected to be the first phase of attacks. Once consumers are more familiar with the technology, attacks on vulnerable apps and even on the payment services are expected to soar.

AVG

Is lack of trust limiting the potential for new online services?

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If you do any or all of these, do you ever stop to think about whether you can trust these online services with your private data like bank details, personal health information, on top of the usual address and date of birth?

With the rapid development and uptake of the Internet of Things, 2015 is set to be the year where the choice of connected devices and services will really take off. With an estimated two billion new people coming online in the next four years across the world, the consideration of who they can trust with their data online has never been more relevant.

Building trust online isn’t as easy as it sounds. It involves every one of us, as individual web users, businesses leaders, policy makers and governments. It’s an agreement of rights and responsibilities on both end-user and provider sides of connected services.

With mobile being the most accessible and affordable means to connect to the Internet for billions of people in developing economies, the telecoms industry at large is going to have a very large role to play in building trust. This means anyone who is providing a mobile service or product needs to be part of this debate.

AVG’s CEO Gary Kovacs recently took part in a debate at GSMA’s Mobile 360 event on the steps needed to build a digital future for Europe. He outlined three principles that the industry must consider in this area.

First, we can’t expect users to simply understand the implications of going online for public services. The industry has a responsibility to help educate the web’s newest arrivals to understand the implications what they do online. Personal data is traded and marketed, and individual privacy can be eroded both with express user knowledge and without.

AVG recently attended the Clinton Global Initiative and announced its Smart User Mission which aims to help first time smartphone users better understand how their data and privacy is affected by the apps and services that they use. The main aim is to help consumers understand that sharing data is not bad; it simply needs to be consensual.

Smart User Iniative

Second, understanding and consenting to personal data exchange bring us to another issue; transparency. At some stage, we’ve all blindly accepted privacy and usage policies for apps and services. Businesses must take steps to become more transparent about their data policies and give users a clear explanation of how their data will be used. AVG has already done this with its Short Data Privacy Notice for its mobile apps but we recognize there is always more that can be done.

Finally, whatever actions the industry takes, we have to enforce it; it has to have teeth and it has to matter if it is to be meaningful. The need to grow consumer trust with the next generation of online services represents the next obstacle in our connected journey and the framework we work to put in place today will set the tone for users’ experiences online in the future.

Image courtesy of GSMA

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Protect your Sony Xperia for free with AVG

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Having AntiVirus on your Android device is one of the most important ways to protect your data, contacts and privacy from hackers, thieves and scams. Some can even help you locate and recover your phone if you lose it.

It’s now even easier for Sony Xperia users to protect their phones as they now have unlimited access to PRO features for six months

Sony Xperia Z3 has AVG installed straight out of the box while Sony Xperia Z1 and Z2 users can download the app for free from Google Play.

When you protect your Xperia device with AVG, you get so much more than AntiVirus protection from malware and scammers.

Performance:

  • Kill tasks that are slowing down your device
  • Powerful battery saving mode to help your Xperia go further
  • Data plan tracking to help you avoid unwanted costs

Anti-Theft

  • Locate, lock and wipe your phone remotely
  • Make your phone ring even if it is on silent
  • Camera Trap will discreetly email you a picture of anyone trying unlock your phone

Privacy

  • Password protect any private apps
  • Back-up your data onto your SD card
  • Advanced call blocking and spam filtering

 

Watch our AVG Academy video on why it’s important to protect your Android smartphone:

Video

Michael McKinnon’s Mobile Safety Tips

 

 

AVG

Why Android phones and tablets need Anti-Virus

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Smartphones and tablets are now as powerful as your three year old desktop or laptop computer, which is why it’s just as important to ensure they are secure. And this is especially true for Android devices. In fact, as much as 97% of all mobile malware (that’s fake apps, viruses and scams) is on Android.

But how does malware get onto your phone in the first place? Here are the three top ways that malware can get onto your Android device and how a simple security app can help to keep you safe.

Video

Android Security Basics

Installing ‘untrusted’ apps

Only using the Google Play Store, or another trusted source for your apps is the default advice for every Android device owner.  And it’s good advice because reputable market places will often scan their apps to ensure they’re safe before you download them.

However, Android also provides the ability to download and install an app directly from a website – as a file with the extension “.APK” – provided, of course, that you first enable the security setting to allow “Untrusted sources”.

Anti-Virus for Android will not only help detect potentially malicious apps, it will also alert you to ensure you keep that “Untrusted sources” security option disabled, except for rare occasions when you might need to temporarily enabled it.

 

Web links and browsing

It’s not just rogue apps that can give you a bad day.  Browsing web sites from your Android phone and tablet can put you at risk.  And there’s also the inconvenience of having your device stolen or lost forever.

Surfing websites from mobile devices is amazingly convenient for you, and the scammers. By exploiting known vulnerabilities, especially in those older Android devices that aren’t up to date, just clicking on a malicious link can be enough to wreak havoc.

Luckily, a good Anti-Virus app which can also scan links and provide protection against phishing attacks will help you surf more safely.

And when it comes to losing your Android phone to tablet, Anti-Theft features allow you to remotely locate, and if stolen, remotely erase your device for peace of mind.

Challenge of Keeping Updated

The ability to keep your Android phone or tablet running the best version of Android with all the latest security fixes depends on a number of factors.

Firstly, the manufacturer may have shipped your device with a modified version of Android to make it behave a little differently.  For example, if you have a Samsung device using the “Touchwiz” interface, or an HTC with the “Sense” look and features.

Second, if you purchased your phone or tablet through a telephone company there’s a good chance it came bundled with some extra apps and features too.

All of these modifications, while arguably adding some value, delay the deployment of security fixes released by Google.

Often you have to wait for  either your telephone company or the device manufacturer (or both) has to refresh their modified versions of Android before you get the benefit.

A good Anti-Virus app can help to keep your device secure until those security updates arrive.

These are just some of the reasons why Android phones and tablets need Anti-Virus.  Do you know of any more?

AVG

Three essential tips for new Android devices

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Unfortunately, with today’s smartphones (which have the capacity and the feature-set of a high-end PC from about 10 years ago) it’s no longer a matter of popping in the SIM and using it.

There are a million things to watch out for and set up. In this week’s blog, we’ve compiled the three most useful steps you need to take besides running through the initial setup and downloading your favorite apps.

Sign into your Google Account:

One of the first things your new Android will ask you to do is sign into your Google account. Now, you could technically go without a Google account, but the benefits outweigh a lot of the worries some users have: once you sign in, it will back-up your phone’s settings, installed apps, account data and more – plus it allows you to purchase apps on the Google Play Store.

If you’re worried about privacy, simply create a new account and leave out information you don’t want to be shared with Google.

Google Sync

Get the latest update:

Most phones come with outdated software right out of the gate (as software continues to improve after devices come off the production line). We suggest checking for updates in your “Settings” app under “About device” (or similar).

Do the same for your apps so you don’t have to go into the Google Play store all the time. Go to Settings again and look for the “Auto-update apps” checkbox.

Software update

Get rid of preinstalled bloatware:

As we discovered last month in our AVG App Consumption report, one of the top reasons for battery drain, storage consumption and data traffic are the preinstalled apps on your phone.

We’ve actually made a free app, AVG Cleaner for Android, which lets you view the most draining apps on your phone and helps you get rid of them: Open it up and go to the App Uninstaller.

This will list all your currently running apps. If you tap on the little blue arrow in the top right, you can then sort the list by:

  • App Usage – how often you use each of your apps
  • Storage Usage – how much space your apps use
  • Battery Usage – how demanding each app is on your battery
  • Data Usage – the apps that send and receive the most data (to help avoid hitting your data plan limit)

Uninstall Bloatware