Tag Archives: Android corner

How to have the safest phone in the world

Free Wi-Fi is great. It’s convenient when you are away from your home network and want to connect to the Internet using your mobile phone, and it saves money and data. But there is a dark side.

Avast SecureLine VPN keeps you safe when connected to an unsecured Wi-Fi

Avast SecureLine VPN keeps you safe when connected to an unsecured Wi-Fi

Unsecured networks can expose you to a hacker who can easily read your messages, steal your logins, passwords,  and credit card details. The danger is that you never know when it could happen, or where, so having a way to secure your device when connected to an unsecured Wi-Fi hotspot is the best protection.

How to avoid the dangers of open Wi-Fi

To avoid the potential of a snoop stealing your private information, you basically have two choices: Stop using unsecured Wi-Fi hotspots or make sure you always have a secure connection by using a VPN (virtual private network), like Avast SecureLine VPN.

A VPN sounds extremely techie, and it is, under the hood. Avast mobile security developers created SecureLine to give you a secure and reliable private connection for your data between computer networks over the Internet. Your outgoing and incoming data is encrypted and it travels in its own private “tunnel” and is decrypted at the other end.

When you use Avast SecureLine VPN, everything you do is anonymous. We don’t keep logs of your online activity, and thanks to SecureLine, no one else will either.

Get a 7-day free trial of Avast SecureLine VPN

Avast SecureLine VPN for Android and iOS takes all that tech goodness and puts it in a simple-to-use app. All you do is tap a connect button, and the app does the rest.

Install Avast SecureLine VPN on your iPhone or iPad and try it free for 7 days.

Install Avast SecureLine VPN on your Android smartphone or tablet and try it free for 7 days.

After you install Secureline, click connect and choose a server from 27 locations in 19 countries, or let SecureLine choose the closest one. You can turn the secure connection on and off with one click.

Bypass geo-restrictions

One of the benefits of connecting with a VPN, especially if you are travelling overseas, is that you can connect to a server back home. This way you can access your favorite entertainment portals without getting that annoying “content blocked” message.

Avast SecureLine is also available for PC and Mac. Visit the Avast Store for pricing information.

Avast finds personal data on phones sold at pawn shops

Many people sell their used smartphones but fail to ensure their personal data is wiped away.

A year and half ago, Avast mobile security researchers bought 20 used phones from online consumer-to-consumer sites, like eBay and Amazon, in the USA. Using easily available recovery software, they were able to access more than 40,000 personal photos, emails, and text messages.

Since then, smartphone technology has progressed and numerous educational articles have been published to inform people about cleaning their phones before selling, so we wanted to see what would happen if we did a similar experiment now. This time, our researchers bought phones from pawn shops: Five devices each in New York, Paris, Barcelona, and Berlin — and again, used widely available free recovery software to detect the data found on the devices.

infograph_used_smartphone_pk_v3

Install Avast Anti-Theft from the Google Play Store for free

Because all the phones in this experiment came from pawn shops, Avast researchers were able to consult with the shop owners prior to purchasing the phones. Each shop owner assured them that the phones had been factory reset and that all data from previous owners was wiped clean. Avast found otherwise. Twelve of the supposedly clean phones were not clean at all.

Avast retrieved more than 2,000 personal photos, emails, text messages, invoices, and one adult video from the phones that the prior owner assumed was deleted. On two of the phones, the previous owners had forgotten to log out of their Gmail accounts, risking having the new owners read or send emails in their name.

Avast researchers were able to recover the following files from the 20 phones:

  • More than 1,200 photos
  • More than 200 photos with adult content
  • 149 photos of children
  • More than 300 emails and text messages
  • More than 260 Google searches, including 170 searches for adult content
  • Two previous owners’ identities
  • Three invoices
  • One working contract
  • One adult video

Why did these phones still have data on them?

Of the phones that were factory reset, 50 percent still contained personal data because the previous owner was running an outdated version of Android that had an improperly functioning factory reset feature.  Some of the previous owners only deleted their files without doing a factory reset. However, this doesn’t mean that the files were removed completely – only the reference to the file was deleted. Other phone owners simply forgot to delete their data or do a factory reset. The possibility that some of these phones were lost and not wiped clean of data before they arrived at the pawn shop also exists.

Scenarios such as these highlight both the responsibility of shop owners to properly wipe and reset phones prior to sale, and also the need for phone owners to utilize anti-theft software in the chance their phone is lost or stolen, in order to remotely wipe the data.

“New Android phones are pretty safe when it comes to the factory reset, but used phones with older Android versions that have a less thorough reset feature are still being sold,” said Gagan Singh, president of mobile at Avast Software.

How to make sure you don’t sell your identity along with your old phone

If you are selling a phone with an older version of Android (version 4.3 is the last one where factory reset did not work properly for some devices), then you cannot depend on the factory reset to ensure your personal data is wiped clean. Deleting files from your Android phone before selling it or giving it away is also not enough. You need to overwrite your files, making them irretrievable. To do so, install Avast Anti-Theft from the Google Play Store for free.

Your mobile device must be connected to your Avast account at https://my.avast.com. Linking your device to your Avast account also allows you to remotely wipe your phone in case it’s stolen or lost.

The final step is to wipe the phone clean, which will delete and overwrite all of your personal data.

Once the app is installed, turn on the WIPE command within the app.

  • Choose WIPE in the Send command column and click Send.
  • Confirm if you really want to delete all your data from the mobile phone.
  • To delete click Send, otherwise click Cancel. Your mobile will be rebooted.
  • The WIPE command will erase all data on your mobile and initiate a factory reset.

Avast at Mobile World Congress

Avast Mobile Security is at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona in Hall 8.1 (App Planet), Booth H65 this week, until February 25. Please stop by if you are around.

Avast free Wi-Fi experiment fools Mobile World Congress attendees

Travelers often connect to free Wi-Fi  to save money

Travelers often connect to free Wi-Fi to save money. image via www.shbarcelona.com

Avast Mobile Security researchers camped out at the Barcelona Airport, threw up a few fake Wi-Fi hotspots, and waited to see who would connect.

 

That’s already an interesting premise for an experiment, but this was the weekend when attendees of Mobile World Congress, “the world’s biggest and most influential mobile event” were arriving, making this not only interesting but fun!  You would think with such a savvy group that the results would be rather ho-hum, but think again!

Thousands of smartphone users threw caution to the wind and connected to one of Avast’s bogus Wi-Fi hotspots, risking being spied on and hacked by cybercriminals.

How did the Barcelona Airport experiment work?

Avast researchers set up Wi-Fi networks next to the Mobile World Congress registration booth at the Barcelona Airport. The Wi-Fi network names were “Starbucks”, “Airport_Free_Wifi_AENA“ and “MWC Free WiFi” — Wi-Fi names (SSIDs) that are either commonplace or that look like they were set up for the congress visitors.

In just 4 hours, Avast gathered more than 8 million data packets and learned the following about the Mobile World Congress visitors:

  • 50.1 percent had an Apple device, 43.4 percent had an Android device, 6.5 percent had an Windows Phone device
  • 61.7 percent searched information on Google or checked their emails on Gmail
  • 14.9 percent visited Yahoo
  • 2 percent visited Spotify
  • 52.3 percent have the Facebook app installed, 2.4 percent have the Twitter app installed
  • Avast could see the identity of  63.5 percent of the devices and users

“Many individuals recognize that surfing over open Wi-Fi isn’t secure. However, some of these same people aren’t aware that their device might automatically connect to a Wi-Fi network unless they adjust their settings,” said Gagan Singh, president of mobile at Avast.

“With most Mobile World Congress visitors traveling from abroad, it’s not surprising to see that many opt to connect to free Wi-Fi in order to save money, instead of using data roaming services. When taking this route, people should utilize a VPN service that anonymizes their data while connecting to public hotspots to ensure that their connection is secure.”

Protect yourself at home or abroad

Avast SecureLine VPN for Android, available on Google Play, and in the Apple App Store for iOS devices, encrypts connections on unsecured public Wi-Fi and allows users to browse anonymously. The app also lets users choose the server location they would like to connect with, enabling users to access content from their home country that may otherwise be restricted by geo-location.

Pretend you’re a hacker at the Avast booth at MWC16

Visitors to MWC16 can step into a hacker’s shoes and see what data is visible over an unencrypted Wi-Fi network.  Visit Avast in Hall 8.1 (App Planet), Booth no. H65.

 

Avast finds personal data on phones sold at pawn shops

Many people sell their used smartphones but fail to ensure their personal data is wiped away.

A year and half ago, Avast mobile security researchers bought 20 used phones from online consumer-to-consumer sites, like eBay and Amazon, in the USA. Using easily available recovery software, they were able to access more than 40,000 personal photos, emails, and text messages.

Since then, smartphone technology has progressed and numerous educational articles have been published to inform people about cleaning their phones before selling, so we wanted to see what would happen if we did a similar experiment now. This time, our researchers bought phones from pawn shops: Five devices each in New York, Paris, Barcelona, and Berlin — and again, used widely available free recovery software to detect the data found on the devices.

infograph_used_smartphone_pk_v3 Install Avast Anti-Theft from the Google Play Store for free

Avast free Wi-Fi experiment fools Mobile World Congress attendees

Travelers often connect to free Wi-Fi  to save money Travelers often connect to free Wi-Fi to save money. image via www.shbarcelona.com

Avast Mobile Security researchers camped out at the Barcelona Airport, threw up a few fake Wi-Fi hotspots, and waited to see who would connect.

 

That’s already an interesting premise for an experiment, but this was the weekend when attendees of Mobile World Congress, “the world’s biggest and most influential mobile event” were arriving, making this not only interesting but fun! You would think with such a savvy group that the results would be rather ho-hum, but think again!

Thousands of smartphone users threw caution to the wind and connected to one of Avast’s bogus Wi-Fi hotspots, risking being spied on and hacked by cybercriminals.

Surprising Twist: Men have cleaner phones than women

Google Play Cleanup screenshot

Avast Cleanup is a free app available from the Google Play store

Just like their closets, women have more clutter on their phones than men.

Our free Avast Cleanup app for Android has removed more than 9,000 petabytes of photos, videos and other unwanted files, to make room for data that matters, since its launch during last year’s Mobile World Congress. In a surprising twist, an analysis of the anonymized data cleaned from Android smartphones showed us that men keep their phones cleaner than women. :-)

The minimalist effect? Men keep their phones emptier and cleaner from data than women do

On average, men eliminate 169 MB of data per clean, while women average only 73 MB per cleaning. Our data also shows that the space on women’s phones is more occupied than the space on men’s devices. Men use just over half of the space on their mobiles, whereas women typically use 13 percent more of their mobile storage space. Additionally, men fill their storage space with apps, while women have more photos and videos stored.

The differences between men and women’s cleaning and storing behaviors are surprising, but could have simple explanations. It could be that men are less attached to their content and get rid of files easier, or that men use their devices more often than women do — therefore accumulating more unnecessary files that later need to be deleted.

The most unwanted data on devices

Unused apps account for three-fourths of the data cleaned by Avast Cleanup. The second most cleaned items that Avast has expunged are media files such as old photos or videos.

“Millenials” are the most active mobile users

Data from our Avast Cleanup reveals that 25 – 34-year-olds seem to be the most active mobile users. Users in that age group clean an average of 261 MB of data per cleaning session. Surprisingly, 18 – 24-year-olds clean only 134 MB of data per Avast Cleanup use, even though they are the age group with the least amount of space on their devices. Our Avast Cleanup statistics show that 18 – 24-year-olds have only 35 percent of space left on their devices, which is the least amount of space compared to the other age groups.

Interestingly, we found that Cleanup users with a Sony device discard the most data with 394 MB removed per average clean, while Samsung owners typically clean 109 MB.

Clean up your phone with our free app

Avast Cleanup operates in two modes: Safe Cleaner and Advanced Cleaner. Safe Cleaner is a customizable scanner that quickly identifies unimportant data, like residual data and app caches, for instant removal. Advanced Cleaner runs in parallel to Safe Cleaner and maps all of the device storage; it also creates a simple overview of all files and applications that take up space. Advanced Cleaner locates inflated or unused applications, and arranges them by file type, size, usage or name, so users can permanently remove the files and free up storage space with ease.

How much unnecessary data do you have stored on your phone? You can download Avast Cleanup from Google Play to find out.

Avast at Mobile World Congress

We are showing Avast Cleanup at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona in Hall 8.1 (App Planet), Booth H65 this week, until February 25. Please stop by if you are around.

 

Surprising Twist: Men have cleaner phones than women

 

Google Play Cleanup screenshot

Just like their closets, women have more clutter on their phones than men.

Our free Avast Cleanup app for Android has removed more than 9,000 petabytes of photos, videos and other unwanted files, to make room for data that matters, since its launch during last year’s Mobile World Congress. In a surprising twist, an analysis of the anonymized data cleaned from Android smartphones showed us that men keep their phones cleaner than women. 🙂

The minimalist effect? Men keep their phones emptier and cleaner from data than women do

On average, men eliminate 169 MB of data per clean, while women average only 73 MB per cleaning. Our data also shows that the space on women’s phones is more occupied than the space on men’s devices. Men use just over half of the space on their mobiles, whereas women typically use 13 percent more of their mobile storage space. Additionally, men fill their storage space with apps, while women have more photos and videos stored.

The differences between men and women’s cleaning and storing behaviors are surprising, but could have simple explanations. It could be that men are less attached to their content and get rid of files easier, or that men use their devices more often than women do — therefore accumulating more unnecessary files that later need to be deleted.

The most unwanted data on devices

Unused apps account for three-fourths of the data cleaned by Avast Cleanup. The second most cleaned items that Avast has expunged are media files such as old photos or videos.

“Millenials” are the most active mobile users

Data from our Avast Cleanup reveals that 25 – 34-year-olds seem to be the most active mobile users. Users in that age group clean an average of 261 MB of data per cleaning session. Surprisingly, 18 – 24-year-olds clean only 134 MB of data per Avast Cleanup use, even though they are the age group with the least amount of space on their devices. Our Avast Cleanup statistics show that 18 – 24-year-olds have only 35 percent of space left on their devices, which is the least amount of space compared to the other age groups.

Interestingly, we found that Cleanup users with a Sony device discard the most data with 394 MB removed per average clean, while Samsung owners typically clean 109 MB.

Can my mobile phone be attacked by malware?

Mobile malware is a growing threat.

Banking, shopping, email. We do things on our phones that used to only be done on our desktop PC. Hackers know valuable data is stored on people’s phones, and they increasingly find new ways to attack mobile users.

smartphones

These devices have information on them that is valuable to hackers

The most common mobile threats are adware packaged as fun gaming apps that provide little value and spams users with ads. SMS attacks are malware which sends unauthorized premium SMS or makes premium-service phone calls. This results in a large monthly bill for the user and a significant source of revenue for cybercrooks.

The most aggressive malware is mobile ransomware. Simplocker was the first Android ransomware to encrypt user files, and now there are thousands of variations that make it nearly impossible to recover the encrypted data on a smartphone.

Privacy is an issue with vulnerabilities such as Certifi-gate and Stagefright, both of which can be exploited to spy on users. Certifi-gate put approximately 50 percent of Android users at risk, and Stagefright made nearly 1 billion Android devices vulnerable to spyware.

Avast protects mobile devices from malware

Avast Mobile Security for Android scans mobile devices and secures them against infected files, phishing, malware, and spyware.  The app provides people with the most advanced mobile malware protection available, now even faster with Avast’s leading cloud scanning engine. Install Avast Mobile Security for free!

Avast protects from unsecure Wi-Fi networks

Because cybercrooks take advantage of unsecure routers and Wi-Fi hotspots, we added Wi-Fi Security which notifies the user when connecting to an unsecure router. The user quickly identifies the security level of Wi-Fi hotspots and can evaluate the risks and decide whether to disconnect or use a VPN instead.

Avast protects user privacy

Privacy concerns range from permission-hungry apps to nosy children. Avast Mobile Security’s Privacy Advisor informs the user about what data apps have access to and ad networks included within apps. To defend their personal data against prying eyes, users can now lock an unlimited number of apps on their device using the App Locking feature.

Avast Mobile Security is available for free in the Google Play Store.

Visit Avast at Mobile World Congress

If you are attending Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, February 22 – 25, please visit Avast to see the app in hall 8.1, booth H65.

Avast to demonstrate mobile security app with Qualcomm at Mobile World Congress 

qualcomm-logo

New machine learning-powered malware detection technology identifies zero-day and transformational malware threats at the processor level.

Avast Software was selected by Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. as the lead mobile security service to integrate Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ Smart Protect, a behavioral analysis-based, anti-malware technology that utilizes technology from the Qualcomm® Zeroth™ Machine Intelligence Platform to detect mobile malware threats to smartphone security and personal privacy in real-time. Qualcomm Technologies and Avast will be demonstrating this mobile security solution at Mobile World Congress next week in Barcelona.

Mobile malware is on the rise 

Avast currently has over two million malicious samples in its mobile threat detection database. Every day, Avast detects 12,000 new, unique mobile malware samples and each quarter about 15% of mobile users worldwide encounter mobile malware.

With the growing use of mobile devices and the valuable data they contain, malware developers increasingly target mobile users. One example of mobile malware is ransomware, which locks a device or the data on it and demands a ransom to unlock the device. Adware is also spreading on mobile. Adware often comes in the form of a gaming or entertainment app that seems harmless, but what users are unaware of is that the adware is using their infected device to click on ads. In 2015, Avast also detected new forms of mobile spyware which intrude on users’ privacy and collect their data. In addition to mobile malware, potential exploits in the Android operating system such as Stagefright put users at risk.

“With threats increasing every day, OEMs and mobile operators need to protect their users in real-time,” said Gagan Singh, president of mobile at Avast. “Snapdragon Smart Protect provides security at the processor level, which is designed to improve customer privacy and protect them from rogue applications, zero day attacks, and ransomware.  We are proud to have worked with Qualcomm Technologies on this effort.”

“Snapdragon Smart Protect is engineered to support real-time, accurate detection of zero-day and transformed mobile malware,” says Sy Choudhury, senior director of product management, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. “The combination of Qualcomm Technologies’ dynamic, behavior-based malware analysis of Snapdragon Smart Protect and the core malware analysis delivered by Avast enables very powerful and comprehensive security and privacy protection for device users.”

Traditional security software is limited to scanning and monitoring software behavior at the application layer level. Snapdragon Smart Protect utilizes Qualcomm Technologies’ Zeroth machine learning technology to detect and classify a broader range of mobile malware at the processor level to achieve an even higher level of protection. While consumers will benefit from better protection, OEMs and mobile operators will benefit from reducing the risk of data leakage and malware attacks for their users.

Snapdragon Smart Protect is available to handset OEMs now on the Snapdragon 820 processor, and is expected to be supported by additional Snapdragon SoCs later this year. The first commercial devices with Snapdragon Smart Protect are expected in the first half of 2016.

Find reliable, secure Wi-Fi hotspots with new Wi-Fi Finder app

Avast Wi-Fi Finder for Android finds secure Wi-Fi connections, wherever you are.

Everyone loves saving their data by using free Wi-Fi hotspots, but that can be risky if the hotspot is unsecure. Hackers can eavesdrop on what you’re doing, see your messages, watch the sites you navigate to, and even steal usernames and passwords. Wi-Fi FInder mapWi-Fi Finder list view

How to find safe Wi-Fi hotspots

New Avast Wi-Fi Finder is an Android app that can help you find reliable, fast, and secure Wi-Fi connections, wherever you are.  With the mobile app’s user-friendly map interface, it’s easy to find hotspots recommended by people around the world. Avast Wi-Fi Finder helps you select a secure Wi-Fi connection without the worry of going over your data plan or the frustration of slow data connections. Avast Wi-Fi Finder is free for Avast Mobile Security users. Download Avast Wi-Fi Finder from the Google Play Store. For iOS, download Wi-Fi Finder from iTunes.

“Many of us have found ourselves in situations when traveling or working remotely in which we’re unable to find reliable and secure Wi-Fi,” said Gagan Singh, president of mobile at Avast. “With the Avast Wi-Fi Finder, consumers are now able to find a safe and fast Wi-Fi connection whether you’re at the gym, hotel, airport, bus station, library or café.”

The Avast Wi-Fi Finder helps you:

  • Connect to the fastest, most secure hotspots
  • Obtain speed without compromising privacy
  • Navigate a collection of nearby Wi-Fi hotspots, recommended and crowdsourced by nearby users

Here’s how Avast found all those safe Wi-Fi hotspots

In August 2015, Avast launched a product crowdsourcing program that allowed Avast Mobile Security users to help Avast harvest nearby available Wi-Fi spots. By enlisting our 230 million users, our team collected Wi-Fi hotspot data from volunteers and evaluated each hotspot’s security level before launching Avast Wi-Fi Finder.


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