Best anti-virus

[gdeez]

What is the best anti-virus? I have AVG right now but I'm wondering if lookout is better or if there is any other ones out there that I dont know about yet..

 

[jtcady]

Well considering there is no Android virus, none.

 

[gdeez]

Well considering there is no Android virus, none.

Thanks for NOTHING

 

[ironass]

The best anti virus is not being stupid!

Here are some threads that might help:-

http://androidforums.com/android-ap...ps-avoid-viruses-guide-those-new-android.html

http://androidforums.com/android-applications/173093-antivirus-android.html

http://androidforums.com/android-applications/98056-antivirus-android-os.html

http://androidforums.com/android-applications/258655-do-apps-get-reviewed-google.html

http://androidforums.com/android-applications/26812-android-viruses.html

http://androidforums.com/android-applications/198315-your-views-anti-virus-lookout.html

Hope this helps.

 

[briman4031]

Thumbs up for lookout. Saved my phone twice. Once with the location feature when I lost it in the snow. Another time when Google wiped out my contacts, Lookout had backed them up as well. The Antivirus seems to work, but for me is just an added feature to the full package.

 

[gdeez]

Who said it was stupid?

 

[Blkhawkz]

Virus writers are like roaches always looking for new victims to harvest. Any protection is better than none at all and AVG are one of the better options around. I personally prefer Dr Web. By the way one of my colleagues recently lost all their info thanks to a virus as they left their bluetooth activated so viruses are out there in the wild

 

[Red_Avatar]

Point still remains that most AV apps are just junk and won't do anything. When such a virus shows up, it's very likely your AV app won't do a thing. Security apps are much more handy - recovering data, location and anti-theft, etc. but in the end, they all suck battery and I'll take my chances without.

 

[ironass]

Who said it was stupid?

No one!

My apologies if you took it personally.

I said... "The best anti virus is not being stupid!"

In other words, take heed of what you are installing.

 

[gdeez]

No one!

My apologies if you took it personally.

I said... "The best anti virus is not being stupid!"

In other words, take heed of what you are installing.

Ohhhh! I get it now! I always read the reviews and check the permissions before I download..but sometimes I go and download ringtones from mabilo.com like an idiot..and I used to download ringtones from funformobile.com all the time on my blackberry and I'm pretty sure it gave my phone viruses and made it run like crap! So hopefully these anti viruses do something!

 

[ironass]

Personally I wouldn't bother with these so-called anti-viruses.

I wonder how many people were saved by their "anti-viruses" in the recent Market app's scare... see here:-

Google removes 58 malicious apps from Android Market, uninstalls them from phones remotely too

Nobody seems to have posted that their particular ant-virus prevented them being able to download or become infected.

 

[(G)]

One related thing I just discovered is that, when rooting my OG Droid, I had to download "rageagainstthecage" as part of the rooting process.

The rooting process went fine, but last night my desktop anti-virus program discovered that "rageagainstthecage," which I'd saved to my desktop computer in case I needed it again, contained an "Android OS trojan" (that's what it called it; I forget the exact name).

I ran a virus/malware checker on the phone and it's apparently OK, but it just proves that the world isn't really all that safe any more for Android.

 

[ironass]

One related thing I just discovered is that, when rooting my OG Droid, I had to download "rageagainstthecage" as part of the rooting process.

The rooting process went fine, but last night my desktop anti-virus program discovered that "rageagainstthecage," which I'd saved to my desktop computer in case I needed it again, contained an "Android OS trojan" (that's what it called it; I forget the exact name).

I ran a virus/malware checker on the phone and it's apparently OK, but it just proves that the world isn't really all that safe any more for Android.

"rageagainstthecage" is a virus... but a "good" virus.

It's used to root your phone and is intended to be there to create a "back-door" to allow the rooting to take place.

For more details, see here:-

Thread rageagainstthecage-arm5.bin - Trojan? | Android Forums and Windows Phone Discussion @ XDA-developers | BoardReader

 

[(G)]

Thanks for setting me straight on this. VERY good to know.

 

[tnlobo420]

Well considering there is no Android virus, none.

must live under A ROCK - LOL

 

[itsallgood]

Some people put to much trust in electronics to not add safe guards. With all of the ID theft out there and smartphones more like computers, I don't understand the logic why those that don't want to protect their info. I use Lookout Premium and love it. I used the free version for about a year and then upgraded to Premium. Since I use my phone as a laptop and store a lot of personal stuff on there, it is a must have for me. I can locate my phone if ever lost. There is a safe browsing mode. I can backup and restore my contacts and photos. Every app that I download is scanned for malware and viruses. I have an automatic daily app and file scan. Lookout lets me know when certain apps need access to cetain personal data, like phone calls, contacts, etc.

 

[A.Nonymous]

Some people put to much trust in electronics to not add safe guards. With all of the ID theft out there and smartphones more like computers, I don't understand the logic why those that don't want to protect their info. I use Lookout Premium and love it. I used the free version for about a year and then upgraded to Premium. Since I use my phone as a laptop and store a lot of personal stuff on there, it is a must have for me. I can locate my phone if ever lost. There is a safe browsing mode. I can backup and restore my contacts and photos. Every app that I download is scanned for malware and viruses. I have an automatic daily app and file scan. Lookout lets me know when certain apps need access to cetain personal data, like phone calls, contacts, etc.

Logic dictates that if you put an app on your phone that is going to run constantly in the background it'll slow the phone down. Now, that's fine if it's an app that offers a service that is needed. AV apps on Android do not. An app to locate your phone is a legit use. A safe browsing mode is completely useless as there are no viruses that target mobile browsers. Backing up contacts and photos is a legit use, but Google does this for you automatically. There is no need to scan any legit apps you download from the market. Do you really think you're going to find malware in Angry Birds or any other legitimate app? Really? And you're going to waste your phones resources scanning your entire phone every day for threats that don't exist? It's the equivalent of of looking under your bed and through your closets every day for boogey men. The Android OS already lets you know when apps need access to things like your data, your contacts, etc... Why would you need an app for that?

 

[itsallgood]

Logic dictates that if you put an app on your phone that is going to run constantly in the background it'll slow the phone down. Now, that's fine if it's an app that offers a service that is needed. AV apps on Android do not. An app to locate your phone is a legit use. A safe browsing mode is completely useless as there are no viruses that target mobile browsers. Backing up contacts and photos is a legit use, but Google does this for you automatically. There is no need to scan any legit apps you download from the market. Do you really think you're going to find malware in Angry Birds or any other legitimate app? Really? And you're going to waste your phones resources scanning your entire phone every day for threats that don't exist? It's the equivalent of of looking under your bed and through your closets every day for boogey men. The Android OS already lets you know when apps need access to things like your data, your contacts, etc... Why would you need an app for that?

You bring up all good points, except you forget that not all websites are mobil sites. (You can pull up full sites, I've done it.) There are thousands of apps in the market, not to mention sideloaded apps, that's not from the Android market you can download. You should do Google search and you will see just how open the android OS is for viruses. Now if android was a closed system like apples iOS, then there is no need for a antivirus app. Check out this article.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/08/12/us-android-security-idUSTRE77B53F20110812?feedType=RSS&feedName=technologyNews&ca=moto

 

[A.Nonymous]

You bring up all good points, except you forget that not all websites are mobil sites. (You can pull up full sites, I've done it.) There are thousands of apps in the market, not to mention sideloaded apps, that's not from the Android market you can download. You should do Google search and you will see just how open the android OS is for viruses. Now if android was a closed system like apples iOS, then there is no need for a antivirus app. Check out this article.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/08/12/us-android-security-idUSTRE77B53F20110812?feedType=RSS&feedName=technologyNews&ca=moto

There have never ever been any viruses that targeted any sort of exploit in a mobile browser in order to infect the phone. Ever. If I'm wrong on that, please link me to the article. I don't think I am. Doesn't matter if you're accessing a mobile site or the full site. There is no malware out there that uses a security exploit in a mobile browser to infect a phone.

If you download shady apps anywhere you put yourself at risk. That's not just in the Android market though. That's the same on any OS. If you use some common sense and only download reputable apps from reputable developers, there is no risk.

If you read the article you linked to you find that Google looked at the guys research and found it to be bogus.

I'm not even going to touch the iOS comment. There has been malware found in the iOS market in the past. Not to mention the fact that you have no idea what any of the apps you install are accessing. You are completely depending on Apple to protect your data.

 

[itsallgood]

Belive what you will, but the threats are real. I have provided you with articles to back up what I have said. Here are a few more per your request.

1) Android hit by rogue app viruses | Mail Online

2) Why Android Viruses Are Growing, and How To Stop Them | TechnoBuffalo

3) Lookout Mobile Security Mobile Threat Report

4) http://thetechjournal.com/electronics/mobile/android-phones-are-infected-by-trojan-virus.xhtml

 

[mikedt]

4) Android Phones are Infected by Trojan virus | TheTechJournal.com

This last one highlights what can happen if one sideloads something from outside of the Market and from some nefarious site in Russia.

Malware has been quite widespread on Android devices in China, most devices here do not have the Market.
Android Malware Targets China Mobile Users | Malware Blog | Trend Micro
Although I am in China, I currently don't see any need for me to have any AV on my phone, as my phone does have the Market. I'm careful about what I install and look at permissions and sources very carefully before installing an app, e.g. does that Tip Calculator or Wallpaper really need GPS location, Camera, Email and SMS?

BTW not all mobile device AV is to be trusted.
http://shouji.360.cn/?src=360mainnavi

I did come across something rather suspicious myself with a free game I downloaded from the Market last week. Game had a 4 star rating and seemingly positive reviews. But when I tried to load the game it just stopped at a suspicious 'Connecting to Server.' message and the game wouldn't start. The thing was, it wasn't even an online playing game. I did post about this in the Android Games subforum of AF, emailed the dev, not heard anything back, then I made the appropriate comments about this in the Market Reviews.

 

[itsallgood]

Thanks for the link, but I can't read the language. (I need it in english) I agree with all your points. The average person could easily make a mistake downloading a virus and that's were the AV comes in handy.

 

[bigbabys]

Lookout is AMAZING if you lose your phone. Even more so if you pay for premium. I just leave the anti-virus feature disabled. If you are really paranoid then by all means partake, but It's easier to just be smart with your app downloads for now. Lookout themselves reported not finding very much malware since launching the software (I did a quick google and I can't find the article, but I swear I read something to that tune)

 

[AngryHatter]

AV is a waste in the Droid environment.
Seekdroid will do all that without AV bloat.

 

[bigbabys]

AV is a waste in the Droid environment.
Seekdroid will do all that without AV bloat.

Does Seekdroid have a web interface with live google mapping of your phone and a button to make your phone emit a loud screech?