Phone Viruses: Is My Phone Protected?

Is my phone protected from viruses? The short answer is that it depends on the type of phone you own. First of all, basic cell phones that only possess calling and voicemail functionality are safe from phone viruses. However, smartphones with internet access, Bluetooth capability and other advanced features are most likely susceptible to phone viruses and any other type of malware that, without proper antivirus software, can infect a computer.

Smartphones Can Be Infected Just Like Any Other Computer Can

Smartphones are small, advanced, hand-held computers that can be infected with any viruses that can infect a personal computer. These phones can become infected in the same ways too. This means that you could visit a phishing website on your mobile browser and have a virus attack your phone’s operating system. You could also open and read an unknown attachment to an email message on your phone, and that attachment could very well infect your phone. Just as you use internet-savvy judgment when surfing the web or downloading email attachments on your computer, so should you when using your phone.

Smartphones Have More Ways to Be Infected

In addition to your phone being able to catch a virus just as your computer can, your phone can actually be infected in more ways – mainly through file syncing. If your computer is infected and your phone is not, you can give your phone the same virus your computer has in a matter of minutes when you sync your phone for a file transfer. You can also get a virus from syncing your phone with a friend’s computer or phone when you share files or music. This is one of the most common ways phone viruses are spread.

Phone Viruses Can Cause Severe Damage

The worst phone viruses can completely obliterate a mobile phone's operating system, just as the worst viruses can destroy your personal computer’s operating system. However, there are some additional concerns when it comes to smartphones. Spyware that infects phones can steal photos and videos without the owner ever knowing.

Almost all smartphones use geo-location tags on images to organize and catalog the photo database. Hackers would then have access to all the geographical locations where you’ve taken pictures with your phone, most likely including your home address and anywhere you go throughout the day while taking pictures on your smartphone.

The iPhone: An Exception to Phone Viruses

The top- selling smartphone, the iPhone, is more secure than any other smartphone. The iPhone runs on the iOS, an incredibly locked down, proprietary operating system created by Apple with layers and layers of encryption. As of now, there are no known viruses for the iPhone or other Apple computer products, whereas there are many, many known viruses for open-source operating systems such as the Android OS. This is not to say that hackers will not devise more phone viruses targeting the iPhone in the future as Apple products become more mainstream, but as of now, iPhone users do not have much to worry about.

Is There Antivirus Software to Protect My Phone from Phone Viruses?

Some of the big-name antivirus software manufacturers, such as Norton, make mobile software security solutions. More and more companies are beginning to do this as well because phone viruses are quickly becoming commonplace.

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