F-Secure introduces mobile phone anti-virus software

Finnish security firm F-Secure has developed and launched a security program for mobile phones to help users fight phone viruses that are on the rise.

The company said its antivirus software products were sold simultaneously in stores and online on September 5. This software is designed to run on smartphones of Nokia using Symbian operating system.

Once installed, the software monitors phone activity and scans for files downloaded from the Internet as well as additional memory such as memory cards to prevent viruses from entering the device.

Ollie Whitehouse, technical director of Symantec security firm, said that the release of F-Secure's anti-virus software at this time is very suitable because people are aware of the threat from mobile phone viruses. . In the past, many people did not pay attention to these viruses because they thought they only existed in laboratories.

However, in recent months, more new viruses have begun to appear and new variants of old phone viruses. Mobile phone viruses, such as Cabir or Commwarrior, can be spread via Bluetooth short-range radio equipped on most smartphones. Commwarrior virus can also spread through multimedia messaging (MMS).

Most mobile viruses target Symbian phones. Users can avoid infection by turning off Bluetooth connectivity on smartphones.

Richard Hales, director of the F-Secure branch in the UK, says only smart mobile phones are likely to be infected with viruses and these phones account for only about 10% of all phones. mobile. However, he said, the number of smart phones is increasing, making it more and more likely to become infected.

Mr. Whitehouse said that the spread of phone viruses is still limited because no mobile phone virus can actually act as PC worms on its own. of the user. However, according to him, this limit will quickly disappear when the method of sending and receiving data of the phone increases.

And it is also becoming increasingly popular for users to store personal data on mobile phones. Protecting these important data is also essential when the number of mobile phone viruses increases.

There are also several security companies introducing programs to help protect mobile phones.For example, in March this year, Symnatec introduced a free antivirus software that protects Nokia phones using Symbian operating systems.However, F-Secure is said to be the first to offer a widely available software on the market.