Attack or steal: two equal mobile device threats

Losing a phone is always a bit of a nuisance, especially if it’s an expensive piece of hardware. With smartphones conquering the world with authority, losing a phone means also losing at least some personal data, such as recently taken pictures, music purchases, etc. It gets even worse if the device has work documents not meant to be seen by anyone outside of the company – then it becomes more than a personal problem.

Losing a smartphone is so common that it is a long-standing risk factor with the BYOD concept for IT workers and is seen as a “typical nightmare”.

Your phone, attacked by cybercrime, or simply lost. Either way, your data is stolen #mobilesecurity

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Any mobile device (a laptop, a tablet or a smartphone) can be lost easily. Laptops are left on public transportation and in airports; tablets can be easily concealed under a menu in a restaurant or left in the chair next to you, never to be seen again; and smartphones are picked from pockets.

According to a recent survey, over a one-year period one respondent in twenty, on average – and as many as one in six for some countries! – lost their smartphone or tablet as a result of carelessness or theft. At the same time, 38% of users admitted that their devices contained confidential data that they would definitely not want to fall into the wrong hands.

And that doesn’t only apply to documents, but also passwords and PIN-codes, as well as any other “hackers’ fodder”.

This all makes it necessary to have the ability to find a lost gadget remotely, or, in the worst case, brick it, so that data cannot be milked from it.

Click on the image to take a check our Webinar recording dedicated to ensuring the mobile security.

Kaspersky Lab has a number of solutions intended to protect data on mobile devices – using any means necessary.

We have just released a new free mobile app called Phound! for Android users, that allows you to block devices or even wipe data by restoring factory defaults.

There is also a mobile app for business-grade users – Kaspersky Security for Mobile with all functions necessary to mitigate the enterprise IT worker’s “typical nightmare”. It provides centralized visibility and control – so you can see, secure, and manage every mobile device that accesses your network and your corporate data. And in a case of emergency (theft or loss), protect the information – lock the missing device, selectively wipe apps and data from the device, and display the device’s location on a map.

You can also sound an alarm on the device and capture photographs of unauthorized users – these portraits may not be a piece of art, but will do well in a police database.

Find and retrieve – or brick and wipe: the ABC of #mobilesecurity.

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Support for Google Cloud Messaging (GCM) helps to ensure Android phones can receive all anti-theft commands rapidly.

Even if an unauthorized user changes the SIM card in the device, Kaspersky Lab’s SIM Watch technology will send you the device’s new number – so you can continue to have remote access to all anti-theft features.

Kaspersky Small Office Security also offers specific Mobile Device Security functions, which include anti-malware and anti-theft technologies to protect Android devices.

All of these products share certain features allowing users to rediscover or lock down a lost/stolen device remotely.

Which is a necessity when it is all about safeguarding the sensitive data stored in a mobile.