The App Scans Smartphones and Tablets for Vulnerabilities Harmful to Data, Financials and Privacy
Woburn, MA – August 15, 2014 -Kaspersky Lab has today released the free mobile application, Kaspersky Fake ID Scanner, to safeguard consumers against various Android vulnerabilities. The app scans smartphones and tablets for vulnerabilities that put valuable data, privacy and even financials at risk.
There has been no shortage of Android vulnerabilities in the last several months. One of the most notable new vulnerabilities is Fake ID, which was found by experts at Bluebox Labs. The vulnerability enables attackers to disguise any applications, including malicious, as legitimate programs developed by well-known vendors. This vulnerability like the Master Key vulnerability, which enables cybercriminals to access any Android device with administrator privileges and launch software without the owner’s knowledge, are high risks to consumers.
Although, as a rule, Google quickly closes such vulnerabilities, millions of Android users remain at risk, since it often takes device manufacturers a long time to update firmware. Malware can use such vulnerabilities to make its way onto smartphones and tablets, often disguised as popular applications, in order to steal personal data stored on the devices, hijack user accounts on social networks, steal online banking credentials, etc.
In order to prevent such vulnerabilities from being exploited, Kaspersky Lab developed Kaspersky Fake ID Scanner. The tool enables Android device owners to scan their devices for vulnerabilities and safely determine that no applications that can exploit those vulnerabilities are installed on their devices. If any threats are detected, the Fake ID Scanner prompts the user to install a free version of Kaspersky Internet Security for Android to remove the vulnerability. This award-winning product will protect the device against malicious code regardless of the vulnerabilities exploited by the malware.
The application is compatible with Android 2.3 and later versions, and is available in Google Play.
About Kaspersky Lab
Kaspersky Lab is the world’s largest privately held vendor of endpoint protection solutions. The company is ranked among the world’s top four vendors of security solutions for endpoint users*. Throughout its more than 16-year history Kaspersky Lab has remained an innovator in IT security and provides effective digital security solutions for large enterprises, SMBs and consumers. Kaspersky Lab, with its holding company registered in the United Kingdom, currently operates in almost 200 countries and territories across the globe, providing protection for over 300 million users worldwide. Learn more at www.kaspersky.com.
* The company was rated fourth in the IDC rating Worldwide Endpoint Security Revenue by Vendor, 2012. The rating was published in the IDC report "Worldwide Endpoint Security 2013–2017 Forecast and 2012 Vendor Shares (IDC #242618, August 2013). The report ranked software vendors according to earnings from sales of endpoint security solutions in 2012.
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Media Contact
Sarah Bergeron
781.503.2615
sarah.bergeron@kaspersky.com
