A team of researchers has developed an Android app to help people better understand when their location is being accessed, something that happens more often than people think.
"All apps that access location need to request permission from the Android platform," Janne Lindqvist [cq], who led the research project, said via email. "The problem is that people don't pay attention to these default disclosures."
A VPN bypass flaw discovered last week in Android Jelly Bean 4.3 also exists in the latest version of Google's mobile operating system, KitKat 4.4, Israeli researchers say.
Ben Gurion University researchers found the initial bug and then did further testing to determine its existence in KitKat. The researchers published their latest findings on the university's Cyber Security Labs blog.
With millions of new iOS and Android devices pouring into the enterprise every quarter, it’s important to know just how much risk these devices bring – and if one mobile operating system has an edge over another when it comes to securing enterprise applications and data.
Google has released the official statistics regarding the usage of the various versions of Android. Continuing the trend spotted in the previous month's report, those devices that are running Android 4.3 Jelly Bean and Android 4.4 KitKat are on the rise. Like the last report, most Android devices are running a version of Jelly Bean. Beginning April 2013, the distribution data charts are now based on the data collected from each device when the user visits the Google Play store.
In an alternate universe, last week's CES was overflowing with Windows RT devices (and probably featured a keynote by a new Microsoft chief executive).
Alas, for Microsoft at least, in this universe, at CES it was the year Android desktops began to gain momentum — shaping up to be the first genuine threat to Windows' dominance of the desktop.
Nokia Normandy, the Nokia’s Android phone has shown up itself on AnTuTu benchmark. The screenshots shared over Weibo in China reveal 5 MP camera, 854 x 480 display resolution and will run Android KitKat’s latest version 4.4.1. The device is codenamed A110 as seen in screenshots and should use Qualcomm Snapdragon processor though the screenshot doesn’t reveal which?
The PC industry isn't doing so well. Sales have dramatically slumped, despite the industry’s efforts to tempt consumers with Windows 8 tablets and transforming touchscreen laptops. But next week, the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas may be the launching pad for a new push — a new brand of computer that runs both Windows and Android.
Many popular Android apps pose significant security threats, according to researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Secure Information Technology in Darmstadt, Germany (Fraunhofer SIT).
The researchers conlcuded that by exploiting weaknesses in the way the Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) protocol is used, attackers can steal sensitive access data, e.g., user names and passwords. Fraunhofer SIT informed over 30 affected app manufacturers and so far, 16 closed the security gap. Among those were Amazon, Yahoo, Google, and Volkswagen Bank.
An Android botnet found in South Korea that steals text messages may be one of the largest and most advanced mobile malware operations discovered, according to security vendor FireEye.
The botnet, which FireEye called “MisoSMS,” was used in 64 spyware campaigns, stealing text messages from phones in Korea and forwarding them to email accounts accessed by hackers in both China and South Korea.
Google today released a mobile app for its Android Device Manager service. Available for free in the Google Play store, the app lets users manage and secure an Android tablet or phone associated with their Google account from another Android device (running Gingerbread and up).
The app gives access to all Android Device Manager features, including locating a tablet or phone on a map, resetting its lock code, and erasing it completely. Just note that your missing device must be connected to the cellular network or to Wi-Fi for it to perform the commands.
