Mobile viruses set to explode

Security experts have warned that while the current generation of viruses for mobile phones are largely a theoretical problem, their rapid evolution means they will pose a major threat in the future, ZDNet Australia reports.

“What took 20 years to develop on the PC has taken about two years on mobile devices. We have seen fully functional backdoor Trojans written for mobile devices. It’s not the earth-shattering threat you might read about, but the threat is real,” one expert said.

Currently, mobile viruses account for a relatively small proportion of malware activity. Experts identify about 10 new mobile virus variants a week, which represents a tiny fraction of the 1400 or so pieces of malware they analyse in that period.

“The key here is going to be critical mass,” the expert said.

As mobile phones become more capable and “smartphone” operating systems become the norm, it will be worthwhile for criminals to develop and modify mobile phone viruses, he predicted.