The association of the Android OS with mobile malware is something that is growing on us. Hardly a week goes by without a news about a new Android malware being discovered or an old one infecting millions of phones worldwide. And given the rampant rise in Android malware, the question of the best antivirus for Android phones always pops up. So, what is the best antivirus for Android anyway? Is it the one that protects your phone from all types of malware threats and virus infections? Or, is it something more? The below points will give you some insight into this.
Virus protection is just a part of the security solution designed for phones. A complete android antivirus solution should comprise the following components as well:
Anti-theft:Inarguably, the biggest security threat to mobile devices is losing it to someone with wrong intentions. The risk of your personal data being misused is immense. Anti-theft, therefore, is a feature that no mobile device can do without. And when this feature is supplemented with a remote wipe, delete and lock feature,it adds an important layer of security to your device.
Backup: Taking regular backups of your data may not be so exciting, but it can be your handy Time Machine. A malware infection can ruin your priceless data on your phone. But if you have a backup, you can resurrect what you have lost.
Parental Control: If your kids use Internet on your phone, then Parental Control is something that can be of great help. Most Parental Control tools not only help parents schedule Internet usage for their kids but also allow them to block websites that are age inappropriate and potentially dangerous.
Phishing Protection: A hacker can be just one phishing website away from accessing your bank account. An antivirus for Android must be intelligent enough to recognize sites that are spoofed and designed to launch phishing attacks.
Call Block and SMS Block: Mobile security also implies protection from unwanted callers and text messages. Almost all Android antivirus software come with call and SMS blocking feature. Using this feature, you can make a blacklist of unwanted numbers and whitelist of known and trusted contacts.
Secure Delete: There are times when you delete certain data and don’t wish anyone to know about it. But with data recovery tools, an attacker can retrieve such data from your phone and misuse it. A few antivirus software for Android come with a feature that can be used to delete data permanently and make it unrecoverable.
News and Updates: An antivirus for Android should also keep you updated about the latest threats, malware attacks, and noteworthy incidents in the IT security world. The more you know about malware threats, the more prepare you will be against them.
With all these points in mind, we can conclude that a stand-alone antivirus for android does not define mobile security, but a combination of the features cited above does.
About the Author:
With a humble Bachelor degree in Physics, Rajib penned his way into the world of technology and its wonders. In his journey as a techno blogger, he came across the world of computer security. And he has been there since, curating stories and serving them to readers across the world.