[johnlen7]

What phone are you currently using? OS? What AV are you running on your own device?

BlackBerry Passport and
Google Pixel XL with Trend Micro Enterprise
MDM - BlackBerry BES 12/ Good Technology (Soon to be changed to XenMobile)

[conite]

MDM - BlackBerry BES 12/ Good Dynamics (Soon to be changed to XenMobile)

Wow. That will be a big step down.

https://www.gartner.com/doc/reprints...t=160902&st=sb

[johnlen7]

Wow. That will be a big step down.

https://www.gartner.com/doc/reprints...t=160902&st=sb

Not really. You selected a particular sheet from the recent BlackBerry article specific to a particular area. Same Gartner site please see the proper Quadrant position in the figure.
https://www.gartner.com/doc/reprints...t=160608&st=sb

Airwatch and Xenmobile are above BlackBerry in both X and Y quadrants and are the supposedly leaders since a very long time.

While we were considering BlackBerry renewal, we had specific requirement to Wrap 3rd party application inside container to provide securely to users. BlackBerry acquired Good didn't have the technology to do it and we were left with No option but to abandon BlackBerry. Discussions were held with BlackBerry through channels but answer was not possible now unless the 3rd party App provider is willing to sit with BlackBerry and do it at Source level.

But, should point out here that since then, BlackBerry acquired 'AppDome' which has now provided the capability which we wanted. Unfortunately for us, the decison was already taken by then.

[cgk]

When I see people taking about 'advertisement pop-ups' - I have to wonder what they are doing - I've *never* seen a pop-up on android .

[ray689]

When I see people taking about 'advertisement pop-ups' - I have to wonder what they are doing - I've *never* seen a pop-up on android .

Probably their antivirus software

[tickerguy]

One word response: No

[Omnitech]

I use A/V on Android devices.

There are many examples of malware and spyware sitting on Google Play long enough to become some of the most highly-downloaded apps in the entire store before it was discovered they were malicious and removed.

I'm extremely cautious about my usage of digital devices in general but I still think it's a good idea in this case. This is coming from someone who has pretty much never run an A/V product on my personal desktop systems, ever - yet I would never dream of making such a recommendation to my I.T. clients.

One of the key problems with mobile platforms is that it is very difficult to lock them down adequately to protect against modern exploits. Typically today people are getting malware via webpage vectors (even if the original link is delivered via email or SMS), and mobile browsers are pathetically limited in their ability to block things like javascript exploits.

There was just a zero-day Firefox exploit released this week that had been actively compromising both Firefox and Tor Browser users all around the world. It was patched today. But I guarantee you that millions of people will be running vulnerable apps for quite a while before they update them. Some security apps can intercept this sort of exploit.

Like with many other Android apps, there are a lot of bogus/junk ones. I personally use Avast but anything from AVG, Symantec, Eset, Trend Micro, Avira, Kaspersky, BitDefender or other reputable vendors should be fine. Be very wary of unknown companies pushing such apps as this is a common method of malware distribution - 'fake AV apps'.

There are also many, many of what I would call "greyware" where they may not do something 100% damaging to you, your device or your data, but they are basically snoopware. There is an Android utility from Appbrain called "Ad Detector" which helps here - it has a realtime detection module which will notify you of apps which have questionable elements or permissions, as soon as you install them.

[johnlen7]

Probably their antivirus software

Ignorance is not something to be proud of and boasting around.

Please google and see how to disable pop up advertisements on android and you will get your answer to how to disable on 'your' android browser. Pop up and Pop over advertisements are the leading means of advertisement through the Internet and from which advertising agencies generates a lot of money...like used in Google Adsense. Its just a simple example...

When people say they *never* ever get pop up advertisements, I am wondering whether they use internet only for Crackberry.

[Omnitech]

When people say they 'never ever' get pop up advertisements, I am wondering whether they use internet only for Crackberry.

The irony of that is that Crackberry has to be one of the worst websites I use for 3rd-party tracking and advertising networks and gobs and gobs and gobs of 3rd-party questionable javascript junk. At least for the desktop site, I end up having to switch browsers or tweak various settings just to get baseline functionality.

Tho my personal opinion of 'popups' in general on Android is that probably 99% of them are some kind of malware or skeezy app producing them. There are certain messaging APIs that can be exploited in Android to generate unwanted notifications/toasts that I think are likely what most of the platform users think of when they think of 'popups'. Another possibility is that some of those APIs can be exploited remotely, if I'm not mistaken.

So you hookup with some "free wifi" hotspot and then notice shortly after a bunch of popup messages appearing, because some malicious actor on the subnet is exploiting that stuff. Especially if running an older or unpatched OS.

[johnlen7]

ums.

I have Mcafee installed on my Wife LG G5. Very recently, her Mcafee alerted her that her traffic was being sniffed when she was in a Hospital open Wifi network and Mcafee alerted her to disconnect from the network. But there were other people around her who were doing 'Safe Computing' and didnt realise anything wrong. When we say that Safe Computing is all is needed my question here is... Will you stop not using Public Free Wifi networks.

I ran a Wifi Packet sniffing example for my users during one of the sessions by redirecting traffic to my PC from their devices on an Open Wifi network. (note that this is without exploiting or touching any of the user devices). So I know what I am talking about here.

[ohaiguise]

I have Mcafee installed on my Wife LG G5. Very recently, her Mcafee alerted her that her traffic was being sniffed when she was in a Hospital open Wifi network and Mcafee alerted her to disconnect from the network. But there were other people around her who were doing 'Safe Computing' and didnt realise anything wrong. When we say that Safe Computing is all is needed my question here is... Will you stop not using Public Free Wifi networks.

I ran a Wifi Packet sniffing example for my users during one of the sessions by redirecting traffic to my PC from their devices on an Open Wifi network. (note that this is without exploiting or touching any of the user devices). So I know what I am talking about here.

You're right. These hideous, bloated 'antivirus' programs are full of snake oil and false positives which make them look more important than they really are.

[Omnitech]

You're right. These hideous, bloated 'antivirus' programs are full of snake oil and false positives which make them look more important than they really are.

I don't know what you've installed but the ones I use certainly don't do that.

If it weren't for a permanent notification entry for Avast (and scanning updates whenever I install or update an app) I would forget it's there the vast majority of the time. No noticeable performance hit, either.

[Hazo]

With a BlackBerry..... no antivirus is necessary.

Posted via CB10

[Tre Lawrence]

Never have used an antivirus on Android. Haven't had to.

If it makes one feel more secure though, l say go for it.

[johnlen7]

You're right. These hideous, bloated 'antivirus' programs are full of snake oil and false positives which make them look more important than they really are.

You remind me of the person who said to me during Q&A that he knows all this stuff and agree to me and that for this reason he has installed and using an Antivirus software 'X' since last 1 year and that it catches a lot of threats. I told him to uninstall that X antivirus immediately. He was using a new Antivirus he found in the google store.

We run Antivirus for our 1000s of users and none complains about false positives and hideous bloatware you are talking about. All our Antivirus devices reports to us on a real time basis on alerts. So please use ommended ones...you dont lose anything. AVG does a good job but may Kill your CPU. Mcafee and Kaspersky are the Best silent operators in my view with very little cpu and battery drain. Trend Micro which I use will take out a little bit of battery...but not to that extend where you think you are HIT hard on your head.

[johnlen7]

With a BlackBerry..... no antivirus is necessary.

Posted via CB10

Is that a statement or a suggestion?

[cgk]

When people say they *never* ever get pop up advertisements, I am wondering whether they use internet only for Crackberry.

Outside of A grade apps (evernote, spotify, Onenote) - I tend to browse a lot of sites - The guardian, BBC - I do not encounter pop-up - I guess clickbait sites might do it but I never visit such places.

[ray689]

Ignorance is not something to be proud of and boasting around.

Please google and see how to disable pop up advertisements on android and you will get your answer to how to disable on 'your' android browser. Pop up and Pop over advertisements are the leading means of advertisement through the Internet and from which advertising agencies generates a lot of money...like used in Google Adsense. Its just a simple example...

When people say they *never* ever get pop up advertisements, I am wondering whether they use internet only for Crackberry.

Lol relax it was a joke. And actually never use the browser for CB, I use the app. With that said, i visit lots of sites in my browser and have never encountered a pop up advertisement as other here have also stated.
Go ahead and use your anti virus as your firm requires but just so you know, i know of people who work in the banking sector and their banks don't even require an antivirus on their Android devices under whatever MDM they are using. Not sure who you work for but I bet banks are just as security conscience if not more then your firm.

[darkwater79]

If it weren't for a permanent notification entry for Avast (and scanning updates whenever I install or update an app) I would forget it's there the vast majority of the time. No noticeable performance hit, either.

I'd have to agree. Though I've not compared to others so far the Avast app on Priv did not impact performance that I saw. It never registered in the top 5 (or whatever fit on the screen) for battery usage either.

I wouldn't mind seeing a comparison of battery and cpu usage between Avast, Kaspersky and some others.

[Omnitech]

Go ahead and use your anti virus as your firm requires but just so you know, i know of people who work in the banking sector and their banks don't even require an antivirus on their Android devices under whatever MDM they are using. Not sure who you work for but I bet banks are just as security conscience if not more then your firm.

Probably because they don't allow users to install any old apps they feel like. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if they don't allow them to install anything at all. That's what I would probably impose if I were running their I.T. dept.

Also, a device managed by an enterprise MDM system is generally restricted in a variety of ways, several of which are quite similar to running a good end-user anti-malware tool.

[RichardAitch]

I dont want to argue on this as I am seeing stuff on a daily basis and my comment is based on my knowledge in the field.

I do demo exploits where users dont even realize that their mobiles have been infected. Something which I tell people - You dont see something doesnt mean that you are not being monitored or attacked. Example: Certain Governments spy on all common man communications including devices and did you ever notice. No! It took Mr. Snowden to reveal facts to public.

Anyway, common sense is that you install an Antivirus. You dont lose anything.

Hi Johnlen7,

I've been involved in the security industry (not cyber) for most of my working life. The use of the example of Government capability is one that I often use but for providing an example that it is simply futile to conduct counter-surveillance against Gov assets. You may as walk around with a tin foil hat.

For the most part, unless you are specifically targeted to gain specific information or intelligence that is held on your devices then common sense approach prevails every time. But this 'common sense' does require an understanding of how attacks are made and what not to do.

[ray689]

Probably because they don't allow users to install any old apps they feel like. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if they don't allow them to install anything at all. That's what I would probably impose if I were running their I.T. dept.

Also, a device managed by an enterprise MDM system is generally restricted in a variety of ways, several of which are quite similar to running a good end-user anti-malware tool.

First of all, this poster stated his company devices are on a MDM platform and still require it. Second of all, not allowing any old app to be installed proves exactly the point when people say you don't require an antivirus if you are careful. Don't isntall garbage crap Apps and you will be fine.

[Omnitech]

First of all, this poster stated his company devices are on a MDM platform and still require it. Second of all, not allowing any old app to be installed proves exactly the point when people say you don't require an antivirus if you are careful. Don't isntall garbage crap Apps and you will be fine.

That's a nice sentiment but the reality is that the average person simply doesn't have the knowledge or wherewithal to do what is necessary to stay safe. Worse, even if they think they do, they are often wrong.

As I wrote previously, there have been MANY cases where malware rose to become some of the MOST POPULAR APPS IN GPLAY before Google got a clue and booted them. In short: just avoiding non-Gplay app sources will NOT guarantee you will never install malware.

http://blog.checkpoint.com/2016/05/2...pesky-as-ever/

http://www.csoonline.com/article/314...-accounts.html


It's always amazed me how deeply invested some people are in the idea that anti-malware tools are just a gigantic scam. I've been working in I.T. for close to 25 yrs now and I'm telling you that�s BS.

Are anti-malware tools perfect, and a 100% guarantee against compromise? Of course not. Are they pointless and useless scams themselves? Of course not, unless you use a lousy or downright fake one. (And unfortunately there are a number of those in mobile app stores these days.)

[anon(9742832)]

Just use the device intelligently, and you will not need an anti-virus.

Get your apps from Google Play.

Amen

[anon(9607753)]

Have to say I agree with Conite on this. After testing out a well known (paid) security app for several months, the app provided relatively little benefit for the resources it required. Sure, there is the limited value of the initial scan while installing a new app. But DTEK and the 'root of trust' take care of 99% of this risk by informing you of major abnormalities and denying root access. The rest of the features tended to be duplications or minor enhancements of what Android already provides...but at the expense of battery burn (constant running in background) and more importantly, adding another device administrator. The latter, at least in the eyes of DTEK, caused a weakening of the device. If you are going to use one, you better trust the security capabilities of the anti-virus app more than what Android and BlackBerry are already providing...otherwise don't waste your money.