The Dangers of Downloads: Securing Mobile Devices in 2016

In 2015, mobile malware attacks were on the rise; from 2014 to 2015 we saw an increase of 61% in the number of these attacks.

Malware has a clear progression path; it starts out targeting unsuspecting users who are likely to open unknown attachments or install unknown applications. The primary target? The user’s information. Think of the early Trojans that used infected machines for DDOS attacks or spam. Then the malware writers start to go after the users’ finances, identity and bank transfers. Finally, the malware morphs into targeted attacks at enterprise resources.

Mobile malware follows the same path. Early on, attackers used malicious apps to send premium SMS messages, racking up huge wireless bills for the unwary user, or getting them to install unwanted applications. Then the malware writers started to target the users’ bank credentials.

The recent SlemBunk attack is just the latest of these types of attacks. We also saw attacks in 2015 that targeted Android and increasingly iOS users, including the iOS XCode Ghost and the iBackdoor attack.

These mobile malware examples prove that you need a complete mobile security solution for 2016. Using an Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) platform, like the one offered by AirWatch in conjunction with the FireEye MTP solution, is necessary to secure your mobile infrastructure.