TELECOM Digest OnLine - Sorted: Cell Phones: Viruses are Catching

Cell Phones: Viruses are Catching

Lee Hudson, MSNBC (msnbc@telecom-digest.org)
Sun, 12 Nov 2006 01:00:49 -0600

Cell Phones: Viruses Are Catching

Newsweek Nov. 20, 2006 issue - Trojan horses, worms and other nasty
viruses have gone wireless and could be targeting your cell
phone. CNET.com called 2006 "the year of mobile malware," and software
experts say the number of known viruses has more than doubled since
January. Phone bugs infect your handset, then multiply via text or
picture messages sent to your contacts. Your phone might still
function, but all those texts can spike your bill and clog the
network.

Phone companies and service providers are scrambling to block mobile
malware. Jan Volzke, an executive at McAfee, says some mobile-phone
companies now implant virus protection directly in handsets—but
adds that the vast majority of users remain vulnerable. Some 30
million devices are protected, he says, but there are 2.6 billion
mobile subscribers worldwide. No stand-alone antivirus software is
currently available to consumers. Experts say the most important
protection may be caution -- not opening odd-looking text messages,
for starters. But most people remain unaware there's a
threat. "Anything that abuses this naivete could really hit big
time," says Volzke.

Lee Hudson
URL: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15674988/site/newsweek/

Copyright 2006 MSNBC.com

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