Is antivirus really necessary?

[MrBaz]

Antivirus on this device is pointless. A virus programmed for Windows will NOT work on your Droid. It just straight up cannot run.
It is just another marketing ploy for a company to make money off an unnecessary product.

Name ONE virus that is out there RIGHT NOW that has a confirmed infection on an Android device.

 

[JhankG]

Not worth the battery and memory drain.

 

[konstructa]

Actually I think Google just teamed up with droidSecurity -Keeping Android Devices Safe
to release a good security prog for android. It's not ready for the Droid but I will probably get it when it comes out. FYI Kaspersky has predicted that 2010 will the year of malware for mobile phones. They even singled out Android and said "Its goind to be a tough year security wise".

Kaspersky: Beware Malicious Android Programs In 2010 | Android Phone Fans

 

[Martin030908]

Kaspersky makes money with articles like this. I wouldn't be too worried.

 

[JessiesGirl]

Antivirus on this device is pointless. A virus programmed for Windows will NOT work on your Droid. It just straight up cannot run.
It is just another marketing ploy for a company to make money off an unnecessary product.

Name ONE virus that is out there RIGHT NOW that has a confirmed infection on an Android device.

This may be a very silly question, as I am not a techie at all.

But if you are synching your Android phone with a Windows machine, couldn't you transfer a virus to that machine? I suppose that machine is usually already protected, is that the thinking?

And why would apps for the Android have Windows viruses? Wouldn't they have Android viruses? Even if there are few or no Android viruses today, they have to be coming, right?

Sorry if I sound like a complete idiot. :icon_ nono2:

 

[LordKastle]

The Android OS is Unix based. The same reason why Macs are less likely to get viruses compared to Windows PCs is the same reason why the Android OS is less likely to get a virus. It is much more difficult to corrupt an operating system based on Unix.

That being said...well it is very unlikely in current times it is not impossible. Nothing is impossible.

Edit: Unix based

 

[konstructa]

The Android OS is Linux based. The same reason why Macs are less likely to get viruses compared to Windows PCs is the same reason why the Android OS is less likely to get a virus. They are both Linux based. It is much more difficult to corrupt an operating system based on Linux.

That being said...well it is very unlikely in current times it is not impossible. Nothing is impossible.

Actually being "Linux based" does not really have anything to do with it and OSX is not "Linux based" it's Unix based. There is a difference. Actually some of the first root kits were Unix based.. They even have cross platform virus's now which is crazy. Look I love the android project and I am not trying to knock it, but realized how much information is on these phones (My first smartphone) and it's scary. The point is to be careful and treat it like you would any other computer. I have a feeling alot of people are going to be using android and that means a market for malware.

 

[WolfMan69]

For what it's worth.. what I have seen almost daily (with IPhones.. no Droids yet..) is that people will transfer infected mp3s or files to their phones.. then bring them into work and plug them into their work PC to charge it.. and BAM! I get a virus alert on the AV Console cause the AV on the PC scanned the phone as it would a removable drive.

So the infected file did not infect the phone.. but would have infected the work PC if not for the AV running... all this also means the employees home PC was obviously already infected. :icon_eek:

I'm assuming with Droids.. the user would have to "mount" the SD card first for the AV to see it... since we do not allow picture phones at work.. that will probably not happen anytime soon. We also don't allow people to charge "anything" via their PCs but those silly users still attempt it.. :icon_ devil:

 

[LordKastle]

Konstructa it would be extremely rare to get a virus on the Android OS or Mac OS at the moment (Linux or Unix). Like I said, it is general knowledge in today's terms that an antivirus software isn't even needed on an a Mac computer (but no OS is impenetrable just very unlikely) but this is because it has been much easier to attack the Windows OS. (As you said it is Unix based, but Android is Linux based)

Windows viruses will not affect the Android OS unless there are extremely complex codes written. But...nothing is invincible. (Linux viruses exist but there are very few and you have a greater chance of stepping outside your door and being on the moon than you do from having a cross-platform Windows/Linux virus.)

But this is not Windows...and trust me when you hear the excuse that "Windows is used by a lot more people than Mac OS so that is why viruses exist", that is garbage. There are plenty of people trying to cause wide-spread havoc on all devices...it is just harder to accomplish.

If you go back and re-read my post I never said it was impossible, on the contrary I said nothing is impossible.

At most you'll have on an Android OS right now is software that snoops aka "key loggers", etc... nothing attacking the OS and causing hardware failure.

 

[EntropikOne]

LordKastle I am in no way saying that you are incorrect, i'm just stating my point of view when i say it is indeed true that windows has more viruses because it is more prominent in the market...but just because an operating system is unix based does not really mean it is more secure than windows. in fact i believe the MAC operating system is the EASIEST to hack into. it's not the unix code that makes linux secure, it's the people that use the code that make it secure. windows security faults i think is majorly due to sloppy coding of the operating system but apple's faults are purely neglect in that they just try to put things together that look good to make money, and as long as it "looks" good, it is good, and they push it out. for example, remember when the iphone came out? and you can take full control over it through a simple text message flaw?? well.....that is just my opinion on the subject, so yes i think antivirus is important for the device, especially those of us running root privileges

 

[Oldride]

Thanks guys for the information on the Anti-Virus software. I had the free Droid Anti-virus (Insecurity Inc.) and had to uninstall it last night. It kept restarting my phone and sending multiple messages when I text. I'm not going to worry about installing anti-virus software until I hear there is a problem and I have to. :motdroidhoriz:

 

[czerdrill]

You're not going to get a virus on a Linux kernel based OS, and downloading an antivirus for it is about as useful as getting training wheels for your tv. There are no viruses on Android, and honestly there most probably won't ever be.

/thread. Seriously.

 

[maciejc85]

Not worth the battery and memory drain

 

[Martin030908]

...and not to mention the anti-virus is going to scan every action on your device causing it to LAG! no need for the anti-virus.

 

[bearman]

My 2 cents:

I'm currently researching AV/malware protection for my Droid and plan to deploy as soon as I find a product that meets my needs and comes from a source that can be verified as being legitimate.

Konstructa mentioned that "some of the first root kits were Unix based". Actually, the very first root kits were Unix based.
Speaking of root, how did we get root access on our device? Someone found a vulnerability that we have exploited to run code of our choice. Guess what - malware writers do the same thing.

Many have stated that Android doesn't need AV because it is Linux based. I've even heard a number of colleagues state the same thing when approached by management asking about AV on Unix servers.
But a common flaw in that thinking is this: most malware anymore doesn't even target the OS. Rather, it targets the applications such as the web browser, email client, Java, Acrobat, Quicktime, etc. Anyone out there avoiding those apps?
Anyone stating we won't ever need protection is just burrying their head in the sand.

My bottom line:
Just because there are no known viruses or malware targeting our beloved platform at the moment is no reason not to research and support tools to protect our platform and the data stored therein.