It's been years since mobile phones were just devices for making calls and sending a quick SMS. These days, with their multi-core processors and gigabytes of RAM and storage, they're powerful little computers that we carry with us and trust with some very sensitive information. Sadly, the fact that we're now trusting our phones with more information means there's more people hell-bent on getting at it. Smartphone malware is no small problem and while consumers are used to having to protect their computers against malicious attacks, they're not used to having to do the same for their phone.
While there are countless virus protection tools for phones, not everyone makes use of them. However, T-Mobile is hoping to protect its customers by providing protection right out of the box. The carrier has teamed up with mobile security firm Lookout to pre-load Lookout’s Automatic App Security will come preloaded on Android devices. This means customers' new phones will ship with antivirus software already installed and they don't have to worry about finding their own.
"Lookout already scans more than 36 million applications for T-Mobile customers every day," said Ian McKerlich, vice president of product management, T-Mobile USA. "Preloading Automatic App Security on our devices allows even more customers to enjoy the security and peace of mind of knowing that they’re protected with the leading Android mobile security and antivirus app."
T-Mobile says the software will be preloaded onto select devices this year (the LG Optimus L9 and the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 will be the first) but will be on most Android devices in 2013. There's no setup or registration required and Lookout will scan all applications upon download, in addition to providing weekly scans for potential threats.
