Are We At The End Of The Android Heyday?

Over the past years, Google’s Android has come to dominate the world of mobile and tablet devices. Even though sales declined slightly at the close of 2014, Android devices still accounted for more than 75 percent of the market share by the end of Q1 2015. Presently, there is an estimate of more than a billion Android devices being used worldwide.

But news breaking over flaws and security holes in the operating system has caused a general stir about the security of Android phones, and has triggered worries about the integrity and safety of data that we entrust into these Google-powered gadgets that have become an inherent part of our lives. Does this mean that the heyday of the more affordable Android devices is over, and we are better off investing in other technologies, such as Apple’s iOS or Microsoft’s Windows Phone?

Let’s have a quick breakdown of recently discovered threats you should be aware of regarding your Android device, plus what to do and what to expect in the future. Of course, tech websites are a treasure trove when it comes to mobile security threats, but they are usually cluttered up with too much overly technical information that usually ends up confusing non-technical readers rather than enlightening them.

Stagefright

This bug, which was introduced in late July, allows attackers to target Android phones by simply gaining access to their victim’s number. At the time of its discovery, this security hole could be exploited on approximately 95 percent of Android devices, and what made it more dangerous was that a successfully stage attack would leave no trace and will require no action on the victim’s part.

By taking advantage of this flaw, malicious users can actually gain administrative access to your phone and steal sensitive information including messages and keys.

Google declared the bug fixed on August 6, but it was later discovered that the patch could be bypassed and Android users were still vulnerable to Stagefright attacks.

RCSAndroid

This is an extremely dangerous malware that was first discovered after a major attack against cyber-security giant Hacking Team in mid-July spilled tons of hacking secrets worldwide. Once it finds its way your Android phone, this little tool allows attackers to take total control of the device, including access to social media and email accounts. It is also able to manipulate your handset’s camera and microphone.

OCToRuTA

Discovered by IBM researchers in early August, this newly discovered vulnerability in the Android OS has been named “One Class to Rule Them All” after a line from J.R.R. Tolkien’s famous fantasy trilogy The Lord of the Rings.

As the name implies, once exploited, this security loophole will allow a completely innocent-looking application to gain full-privileged access to your Android device, replace your legitimate apps with fake, malicious versions, and steal all your secrets.

Fingerprint theft

The exploitation of this vulnerability can have ramifications that go beyond the confines of your Android phone, especially if you rely on biometric technology for security at work and other places.

Researchers have found a flaw in Android’s security system that allows attackers to steal fingerprint information stored on your phone or monitor data passing through your handset’s fingerprint sensor.

Are Android devices less safe than their counterparts?

So many threats and severe vulnerabilities found in less than a month’s time gives cause for consternation. The good news is all of these problems have been fixed by the manufacturers, and if you’ve been keeping yourself up-to-date with patches delivered by Google on a regular basis, you can rest assured that you are immune to attacks based on the above-mentioned threats.

But there’s no telling what will come up in the next weeks and months, and given constant news of new threats, there’s no guarantee that you will not be the victim of the next zero-day threat that will pop up on the Android system.

But this doesn’t mean that Android is more flawed than its counterparts. The reason that so many attacks and exploits are being discovered on Android stem from the fact it is the most widely used operating system on mobile and tablet devices, and malicious hackers tend to invest on systems that give them more potential targets.

In fact, Apple’s iOS is known to have a few nasty flaws of itself that are no less potent than those of the Android, and Microsoft’s Windows Phone OS tends to collect user data even when told not to.

Where to go from here?

Whether the exposure of serious flaws will actually affect Android sales figures will become more evident in the months to come.

In the meanwhile, if you’re an Android owner and plan to stick with your current technology, make sure to regularly check-in on updates. And also consider investing into a third-party anti-malware application for your handset and avoid downloading apps from unknown and untrusted sources.

Alternately, if you think it’s time to move on to some other brand, be sure to do some thorough research first, because other systems can be just as vulnerable as Android, even if less-targeted.

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