Monday
Jun132011
Google pulls more Android malware apps
Monday, June 13, 2011 at 2:08PM Google pulled 10 apps from the Android Market last week after it was notified of a problem by an assistant professor at North Carolina State University. All of the apps were related to Angry Birds (cheats etc.) and this is the third time in recent months that this has happened.
I really do want to see more done in this area, but how easy that will be is difficult to know. The Android Market is huge and maybe impossible to manage in its current form.
More at Computerworld.
Reader Comments (10)
I really do want to see more done in this area
It's a tricky line - too far, and they're criticised for being closed / over controlling; too little, and they are considered too lax and permissive.
Do anything, and they start becoming liable for the content of what they host, which is not overly attractive unless you intend on being pretty controlling...
True- it is an impossible position for Google, and one in which I am sure they wish they had a time machine to start all over again.
Yes, it's difficult. But Google has taken the easy way out by allowing anyone to post anyone to post anything to the marketplace. That's three times in as many months that the company has exposed its customers to preventable risk, and I don't think that is acceptable.
Google has taken the easy way out by allowing anyone to post anyone to post anything to the marketplace.
As opposed to Apple's "default no, everything needs prior approval" approach?
Neither is really preferable, to my mind - it's just a question of audience awareness.
the company has exposed its customers to preventable risk, and I don't think that is acceptable.
I guess the next step is requiring web hosting providers to vet all the material that they host, since phishing sites have to be hosted somewhere. Or else connected to the Internet - so access providers should be responsible for checking every bit which flows across their networks.
I think it's a slippery slope when one *requires* an online intermediary to take action, otherwise than in the most extreme of circumstances.
Unless Google has a disclaimer up front saying that users are downloading these apps at their own risk and that the apps may be malware, the company is being disingenuous. By slapping it's brand on the marketplace and loading it on every device, Google is implying that this is a "trusted source" for apps. It isn't.
"it's just a question of audience awareness"
Agreed. The average punter buying an Android phone is woefully unprepared to deal with viruses, malware, and phishing attacks, but Google is implying it's safe to download apps from their marketplace. That's wrong.
Google is implying it's safe to download apps from their marketplace. That's wrong.
It's been a while since I used Android, but when I did, it was pretty clear to me that Google was not taking responsibility for the applications on the store, and wasn't doing any form of testing.
This was clear to me, and seemed very reasonable.
I'm not sure that the default position is that, if someone sees a hosting service by a third party, they automatically assume that that third party is vetting all the content, but perhaps that's just me.
You can't be a little bit .... You either control it or not. If you don't, there should be a warning right up front. Of course that would be bad for business. Maybe Google should build virus/malware/etc checking into Android.
Or maybe they have to check every App regardless of policy and catch most of it. But they still need the warning.
An alternative is to have two stores - one closed and one open. The average consumer can use the closed one, where all Apps are vetted. And those adventurous pro-open people can use the open store and take their chances.
Neil I don't think it's reasonable at all. You are assuming the group that carry smartphones is the same group that are PC savvy. They are not the same at all. THey don't expect malware to be present on their phone or easily available and they expect that the store will have some sort of control on this kind of thing otherwise you would be advised to get anti-malware software - like you do if you buy a PC.
That is clearly not the case in android land and it's only going to get worse - unless Google adopt a similar approach that apple do - which will never happen as many people buy android because of a misguided belief about its openness (most of the people I see with android here in australia have never touched an iphone and bought android because someone told them Apple was restrictive, without actually knowing why)
I think very soon you'll actually be forced to have some sort of anti-virus/spyware/malware installed on your android device, which is a a waste of more resources on your phone