• After 15+ years, we've made a big change: Android Forums is now Early Bird Club. Learn more here.

Help Anti-Virus/Anti-Malware Apps

Hello to everyone. I am seriously considering downloading an anti-virus/anti-malware app from the Google Play Store for my smartphone but as I know next to nothing about this sort of thing I would greatly appreciate any insight that anyone might be able to provide. My phone is a Samsung Galaxy S4 which has the "Samsung Security Police" as a built-in feature and is supposed to provide anti-virus and anti-malware protection and I have it set to "High" which supposedly "blocks known and potential threats". Therefore there are a few questions I would really prefer to have an answer to before I proceed. 1. Since I already have the Samsung Security Police do I really need further protection? 2. If I do install an anti-virus/anti-malware app is it possible it would conflict with the Samsung Security Police or in some way conflict with the phones operating system or performance? 3. Will these anti-virus/anti-malware apps slow down the phone or cause a significant drain on the battery? I know these are a lot of questions but its just that I'm kind of scared to add additional protection to a phone that already has built in protection without knowing if and how it might affect it. I love my S4 and definitely don't want to do anything that might screw it up. Again, any insight into any or all of these questions would be greatly appreciated and you have my thanks and gratitude in advance.
 
If you only install apps from the Play Store you are unlikely to need an anti-malware app (there are no Android viruses, developers just call these things anti-virus because they expect punters to be familiar with that term). If you also check app permissions before installing, and avoid those with intrusive permissions not related to their functions (especially the ability to install other apps) then you are even less likely to need it.

I can't comment on the Samsung thing as I've no experience with it. Whether an additional app would slow the phone down or drain battery will depend on the app and what options you enable (e.g. if you let it scan every app each time you open it it will have a lot more impact than if you just let it scan apps when you install them).

One top tip: avoid anything by Cheetah Mobile - they are data mining spammers and the last thing you want is a security app, with all the permissions those have, from people like that.
 
Upvote 0
If you only install apps from the Play Store you are unlikely to need an anti-malware app (there are no Android viruses, developers just call these things anti-virus because they expect punters to be familiar with that term). If you also check app permissions before installing, and avoid those with intrusive permissions not related to their functions (especially the ability to install other apps) then you are even less likely to need it.

I can't comment on the Samsung thing as I've no experience with it. Whether an additional app would slow the phone down or drain battery will depend on the app and what options you enable (e.g. if you let it scan every app each time you open it it will have a lot more impact than if you just let it scan apps when you install them).

One top tip: avoid anything by Cheetah Mobile - they are data mining spammers and the last thing you want is a security app, with all the permissions those have, from people like that.
Thanks a million for the info. I've also been researching it on the internet and most of the articles I read agree with your conclusions. I think I'll just stick with the phones built in security.
 
Upvote 0
Do you mean "Samsung Security Policy"? That is in relation to app permissions and SE for Android. Knox security specifically in Samsung devices which is access and encryption policy. It's not an antivirus or anti malware scanning app.

@Hadron is indeed correct, these kind of scanning and prevention apps are generally unnecessary if you stick to the approved channels for apps. They might, however, provide you with other services you might like, setting a missing or stolen device to take a picture of anyone who tries to use it and email (or text) it to a specific account. You'd have to look at the individual apps so see everything they claim to do. Remote wipes or locating your device is something Android Device Manager handles, but you have to authorize it to do so, first.
 
Upvote 0
Do you mean "Samsung Security Policy"? That is in relation to app permissions and SE for Android. Knox security specifically in Samsung devices which is access and encryption policy. It's not an antivirus or anti malware scanning app.

@Hadron is indeed correct, these kind of scanning and prevention apps are generally unnecessary if you stick to the approved channels for apps. They might, however, provide you with other services you might like, setting a missing or stolen device to take a picture of anyone who tries to use it and email (or text) it to a specific account. You'd have to look at the individual apps so see everything they claim to do. Remote wipes or locating your device is something Android Device Manager handles, but you have to authorize it to do so, first.
My mistake. It does say "policy", not police. I could have sworn I saw "Samsung Security Police" somewhere on the internet and thats what got me confused. At any rate, since I never download apps from outside the play store I agree with you and Hadron that I probably don't need an anti-malware app. Another thing I'm curious about though : I use the Google Chrome browser on the phone a lot to surf the net. Of course the Chrome browser itself came from the play store but since I use it to surf the net and occasionally download images from sites like Deviant Art and Google images am I in any danger of contracting malware through it?
 
Upvote 0
If you're only downloading images, then you're okay. Even with the stagefright and heartbleed and any other cutsie stupid ... er ... um ... i mean "clever" names they come up with for security exploits, these are proof-of-concept and nothing exists in the wild. The real malware you are going to encounter will be from installing something, not browsing or downloading files (unless the file is executable). Some nastyware will play tricks with permissions by temporarily rooting your phone and installing to the system partition so the user can't remove it, but those are almost always from hacked apps on shady sites.
 
  • Like
Reactions: James Hansford
Upvote 0
If you're only downloading images, then you're okay. Even with the stagefright and heartbleed and any other cutsie stupid ... er ... um ... i mean "clever" names they come up with for security exploits, these are proof-of-concept and nothing exists in the wild. The real malware you are going to encounter will be from installing something, not browsing or downloading files (unless the file is executable). Some nastyware will play tricks with permissions by temporarily rooting your phone and installing to the system partition so the user can't remove it, but those are almost always from hacked apps on shady sites.
Thanks. I've only been using the Internet for five years (I was a late comer) and although I've learned a lot I still have a lot to learn and I greatly appreciate the assistance and experience of people like you and Hadron.
 
Upvote 0
Agreed with the above points and especially about Cheetah Mobile. Despite the clever catchy name, this is a pure Chinese company based in Beijing (they market many products under the "CM" logo). Now, trusting your phone security to a Chinese company, isn't it like trusting the wolf....? you get the idea.

IF you are installing apk files, you do need AV on your phone. The other experts can chime in here. I use Bitdefender AV free. Light on resources, does the job.
 
  • Like
Reactions: James Hansford
Upvote 0
Agreed with the above points and especially about Cheetah Mobile. Despite the clever catchy name, this is a pure Chinese company based in Beijing (they market many products under the "CM" logo). Now, trusting your phone security to a Chinese company, isn't it like trusting the wolf....? you get the idea.

IF you are installing apk files, you do need AV on your phone. The other experts can chime in here. I use Bitdefender AV free. Light on resources, does the job.
Thanks for all the info. I only install apps from the play store for now but I'll keep Bitdefender in mind if I decide to go outside the play store in the future. And I'll definitely stay away from anything having to do with Cheetah Mobile.
 
Upvote 0
This is some suggestions I wrote up on how to stay secure using your phone, in two parts. The second part is for the more paranoid among us. Just my 2 cents added to what' already been said...

http://forums.androidcentral.com/showthread.php?p=4749114
Thanks for the link. I found it very informative, especially the common sense part. You also mention using a secure browser. The only browser I ever use on my phone or tablet is the Google Chrome app. Is it as secure as Firefox or should I consider switching?
 
Last edited:
Upvote 0
I prefer Firefox in general, but also for security. It has some nice security extensions available.

And just to add some more information here's a list of more apps besides Cheetah Mobile to avoid:

http://forums.androidcentral.com/ge...591608-antivirus-android-not.html#post4752098
Thanks again. I just installed Firefox on my tablet. I'm going to take some time to learn how to navigate it and add the security extentions you mentioned and then install it on my phone. Thanks also for the additional link. I'll definitely be checking it out also.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Crashdamage
Upvote 0
Thanks again. I just installed Firefox on my tablet. I'm going to take some time to learn how to navigate it and add the security extentions you mentioned and then install it on my phone. Thanks also for the additional link. I'll definitely be checking it out also.
I try different browsers now an then when someone posts about how great some hot new browser or version is. But somehow I'm always disappointed. For many years now, I still keep coming back to Firefox. For me, it just works.

There's a link in that link I gave, near the bottom of that page, that if you're interested in email security might interest you. To make it easy for you, here's that link:

http://androidforums.com/threads/email-which-apps-keep-it-private.935578/#post-7051405

And what the heck, as long as I'm at it, this post has links to some really good information. If you don't want to bother, maybe these links will help someone else reading this thread...

http://forums.androidcentral.com/showthread.php?p=4435166
 
Last edited:
Upvote 0
I try different browsers now an then when someone posts about how great some hot new browser or version is. But someho I'm always disappointed. For many years npw, I still keep coming back to Firefox. For me, it just works.

There's a link in that link I gave, near the bottom of that page, that if you're interested in email security might interest you. To make it easy for you, here's that link:

http://androidforums.com/threads/email-which-apps-keep-it-private.935578/#post-7051405

And what the heck, as long as I'm at it, this post has links to some really good information. If you don't want to bother, maybe these links will help someone else reading this thread...

http://forums.androidcentral.com/showthread.php?p=4435166
It won't be a bother at all. I want to learn as much about internet security as possible. In fact, the more I learn the more amazed I am about how much tracking and collecting of personal information that is going on every time I browse. I definitely don't like that and am going to use the "Do not track" feature of whatever browsers I use from now on. But from what I've been reading not all companies honor that request.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Crashdamage
Upvote 0

BEST TECH IN 2023

We've been tracking upcoming products and ranking the best tech since 2007. Thanks for trusting our opinion: we get rewarded through affiliate links that earn us a commission and we invite you to learn more about us.

Smartphones