Android Market puts users at risk
L33tdawg: Riley's slides along with all other presentations can be downloaded from http://conference.hitb.org/hitbsecconf2011kul/materials/
MILLIONS of Google Android operating system users are putting themselves at risk when installing and using applications from the Android Market.
Riley Hassel, founder of US-based security products and services company Privateer Labs said that this is because writing mobile applications has now become a cinch for many, with the myriad of books and websites offering guidance and advice. However the problem with consumers writing apps for consumers is that they are not security experts.
"Since there is a lack of security validation before such programs are made available in the marketplace, this has led to a rising number of vulnerabilities and threats," Hassel said during his presentation at the Hack in The Box security conference. One such threat is "app phishing," which allows a hacker to intercept the usernames and passwords supplied to popular apps.