A glance at Mobile Security:-Android Vs iOS
The war between mobile operating systems(MOS) started with the advent of smart phones and other mobile devices and shows no signs of ending anytime soon.We have had MOSs going head-to-head in multiple fields: usability extension and apps, support, community and even appearence. However one persistent area of debate is related to mobile security.
When you think of it, both Android and iOS were created with security in mind. The goals of the creators of iOS and Android were to make the platform inherently secure, rather than to force users to rely upon third party security software. Still, both Android and iOS have faced their due share of criticism when it comes to security. For instance, Android is said to offer little or no protection against data integrity attacks, while iOS has poor scores when it comes to implementing permission based-access control. Arguably, is claimed that iOS has a better way encryption mechanism than Android. Yes, such encryption does not claim that iOS is better than Android at preventing resource abuse. In fact, Android performs much better , simply because it had the ability to run apps in isolation, thereby limiting the damaging ability of malicious app.
Let us have a brief comparison now
|
Category |
Android |
Apple iOS |
| Approx number of apps |
600,000+ |
500,000+ |
|
Hacks attempts on Top 70 paid apps(%) |
96% |
92% |
|
Hack attempts on Top 15 free apps(%) |
80% |
40% |
|
Marketplace/App store |
Unregulated by Google |
Strictly regulated by Apple |
|
Malicious apps |
Google bouncer screens for such apps |
Apple has regulation mechanism in place, no specifis software foe malicious apps |
|
Protection from web based attacks |
Yes |
Yes |
|
Data encryption |
Average |
Excellent |
|
User authentication for Apps |
Yes |
Yes |
|
Remote erase |
Yes, via third party apps only |
No |
|
Permissions |
Granted while downloading |
Granted while using for the first time |
|
Approx market share |
59% |
20% |
As per the above table, Android lets you grant apps permissions before you can actually download them. Apple IOS let you do the same when you run the app for the first time. In iOS, you will have the app lying dormant until you actually run it and as a result, that app all the time in the world to harm you. Android apps on the other hand, are required to inform you about the permission settings that they seek before they are downloaded and if you are not happy with the security settings you can easily choose not to install such apps in the first place.
It is true that Android faces more attempts and malicious attacks than IOS. Yet it is because it is a more popular OS. Android is open to third party management tools for security and thus with a proper security settings level you can easily make your Android service bullet proof.
Apple iOs devices have less malicious attacks in terms of numbers, but whatever little share of attacks they get are more serious in nature compared to the ones against Android. As, AdaptiveMobile once reported, iOS is the least secure platform when it comes to basic things such as sending an SMS.
However, even Android is not a divine creation, and you need exercise caution: download apps that are from trusted developers(the G+ ratings and community feed back are an excellent way to judge the credibility of a developer).
Further more, make sure that you read the permission details carefully and use mobile banking only via the official apps. Last but not the least stay away from those cash prize links in emails and apps.