Kaspersky: Google does not secure Android apps

MOSCOW, Russia: Users of Google's Android operating system are at increasing risk of being targetted by cybercriminals according to the director of Russian anti-virus vendor Kaspersky Lab's global research and analysis team.

Aleks Gostev believes that malware targetting the operating system will be a major concern this year because Google does not perform any checks to ensure third-party software applications sold through their Android market are secure.

"Currently the rules are very simple, you pay $25 dollars and your program gets posted, and Google does not do aything to check or manage this process. This is a serious weakpooint for the platform at this point," Gostev stated. "There's already malware for Android so the apperance of new malware is just a matter of time, not technology."

Gostev says that Google will need to address the problem as a priority, but that it won't be easy.

"They are going to have to conduct some sort of audit of all the files on Google market. And they are not going to be able to use exisitng mobile antivirus solutions, so will have to have a group of researchers of their own internally," he explained.

Gostev does believe however that Google is "very focused" on security and that the current model chosen by the search giant that let's anyone upload an application was a "conscious decision (on their part)...and I'm sure they went through some kind of risk management assessment."

Aside from third-party application Android vulnerability, Kaspersky Lab predicts that 2010 will see Google Wave become a target for cybercriminals as well. Other threats high on their list include mobile malware, not just for Android devices, but also the iPhone along with more peer-to-peer (P2P) and torrent attacks.