Is Your Phone Catching a Virus?

Just when you were getting the hang of protecting your computer from viruses, they must have sneezed and found your cell phone. One in every 10 phones is now a smart phone—capable of handling data and messaging. That means it's become easy and lucrative for hackers to attack your cell phone. And the dangers are just as real. From 2004 to 2006, the number of phone viruses doubled every month.

According to Symantec, viruses spread on cell phones in a variety of ways: Internet downloads, MMS (multimedia messaging service) attachments, and Bluetooth transfers to name a few. They'll often show up as game downloads, updates to your phone's system, ringtones, or alerts. McAfee Avert Labs has identified about 450 different variants of mobile threats, and that's not including phishing attacks and spam. According to McAfee research, 83 percent of worldwide carriers have had security incidents in 2007.

What do these viruses do? Reports are trickling in: A Seattle family was watched, monitored, and threatened because of spyware on their cell phone. A man's cell phone content was wiped clean after he downloaded a virus-infested ringtone. Crashes, unstable or slower-than-usual performance, quick battery consumption, incorrect or skyrocketing mobile phone bills, a dramatic increase in messaging charges—any of these could be a virus.

One of the original cell phone viruses (2004) was transmitted through a Bluetooth connection. Like your PC, some phone viruses are just annoying—a pop-up or a silly joke. Others are a bit more insidious, like the one that resets your phone monthly.

But the latest and most sophisticated crop are what's called "pranking for profit." This can involve things like redirecting your calls to a different carrier in a different country, racking up a hefty phone bill. Or sending an MMS message to everyone in your contact directory, leaving you with enormous extra charges. Or "vishing," when you'll get a voice call that asks for information, faking it by posing as a legitimate business. A downloaded application may send information about your phone account to hackers. Snoopware (which is spyware on steroids) might capture your keypad clicks.

How do you know you've been infected? Pay attention when your phone starts behaving badly. Are your contacts disappearing? Are your calendar entries gone? Does your phone bill have strange charges?

If so, suspect a virus before you suspect user error.

Next up? We'll look at the new tools from Symantec and McAfee designed to protect your phone from infection.