Android Marketplace May or May not have seen its first Malware

“That’s the way things are for Windows,” he pointed out. “Nothing is approved by anybody, and it’s worked very well for Microsoft.”

How can anyone write that with a straight face? Of course it’s worked out well for Microsoft. Never mind Microsoft’s users. Google will make out fine no matter how many users get their credit card numbers stolen by scammers, in other words. 

I do find it necessary to admit that this article offers no proof that Android Marketplace has in fact allowed in apps that are malicious in nature. All that is known is that 50 or so apps from the same author were pulled suddenly after some complaints. But that’s beside the point. The point is that there’s been an Elephant in the room when it comes to Android and Google’s reluctance to take security seriously. Most of the glowing press fails to recognize that Android, “open” as it is, is about as secure as Microsoft Windows 95 was. 

Say what you want about Apple’s approval process. It’s a walled-garden. It excludes people who don’t fit Apple’s profile of good taste. Whatever. At least I know that there’s a very good chance that an app I download at the App Store isn’t going to steal my identity. Could something get past Apple and still be malicious? Possibly. But at least someone has given it a preliminary check before its release. And at least I know that Apple has mechanisms in place to stop apps from spreading viruses like wildfire if one does happen to slip through.

So far, no massive reports of malware have appeared for Android, though it stands to reason that as Android gains popularity over the next few years, that will likely change. Not because popularity necessarily leads to successful hacking, but because Google has literally taken zero steps to prevent malicious software from infecting Android users. It’s just plain irresponsible. 

We may not have yet seen the first Malware app for Android, but we surely haven’t seen the last, either.