The threat level for Android devices has increased again: G DATA security experts have counted 810.965 new malicious files in the third quarter of 2017. This constitutes a 17% increase in comparison to the previous quarter. Meanwhile, with a share of 73% in Q3, Android has become the most popular mobile operating system.
New Android malware strain every 10 seconds
Up until Q3/2017, G DATA analysts have discovered a total of 2,258,387 new Android malware strains - 810,965 of these in the most recent third quarter. The experts detected an average of 8,815 new malware strains every day for the highly popular mobile operating system.
The number of new Android malware instances increased by 21 percent compared to the third quarter of 2016 (668,656). G DATA experts are expecting some 3,500,000 new Android malware strains for the year as a whole.
Current security incidents require a rethink on the part of manufacturers
The KRACK WLAN hole, the Blueborne and Gooligan security holes - security holes in Android continue to make the headlines. Google usually reacts quickly to these and publishes security updates - however, these are frequently only received by their own devices. According to Google statistics, only about 21 percent of Android users are running Android 7.0, which is already over a year old – with a meager 0,3 per cent, the latest version of Android is hardly used at the moment. Security holes and problems are being discovered all the time. A major rethink on the part of smartphone manufacturers is required. For many devices, any updates have to be adapted to the modified operating system of the respective smartphone manufacturer. It is often unclear if an update for a particular device will even be available. In most cases, weeks or even months go by before it is published.
Mobile devices are an indispensable part of everyday digital life. They are constant companions and are being used for shopping and banking transactions with increasing frequency. There are serious security risks for users if the devices are not fully up to date. Therefore, action has to be taken and manufacturers need to be reminded to fulfil their legal obligations.
Version | Codename | Distribution |
2.3.3 - | Gingerbread | 0.5% |
4.0.3 - | Ice Cream Sandwich | 0.5% |
4.1.x | Jelly Bean | 2.2% |
4.2.x | 3.1% | |
4.3 | 0.9% | |
4.4 | KitKat | 13.8% |
5.0 | Lollipop | 6.4% |
5.1 | 20.8% | |
6.0 | Marshmallow | 30.9% |
7.0 | Nougat | 17.6% |
7.1 | 3.0% | |
8.0 | Oreo | 0.3% |
(Source: Google Developer Dashboard, data as per November 9, 2017)