FriendCaller Blog

 Do you know it could be the virus you’re carrying along with you? Yes..! This new chain doesn’t target the immune system, but instead the operating system — on your smartphone.

Smartphone usage has shot up to an amazing growth over the past few years. Because of the immense popularity, smartphones have become a main point of reference for vile hackers looking to spread malware and steal personal information. The main avenue for viruses to contaminate smartphones is through third-party apps. There are over one million apps combined for the two most popular mobile operating systems, Google’s Android and Apple’s iOS. Many hacked apps, often made to look like popular apps, are equipped with malware. More than 90% of the top-selling Android and iOS apps have hacked versions available for download on torrent sites and other unofficial platforms, according to a study by Arxan, a mobile security company.

Up till now, Apple seems to be performing a fairly better job protecting its mobile users against cyber threats. The iPhone has never seen a virus, and its only spam app was removed. Conversely, 75% of smartphone malware targets Android devices, according to F-Secure.

One probable reason hackers target Android over Apple is that the former enjoys a much greater share of the smartphone market. More than 50% of all smartphone users employ the Android OS, while Apple’s market share is closer to 30%. With far more people using Android devices, a virus has the ability to do much greater damage.

Check out this infographic by Ladbrokes Games for more information on mobile app security and how the top two operating systems stack up!

Yes! Shocking but true. With Google taking the lead and Apple being the top manufacturer today in the Smartphone market, it’s getting more and more difficult for RIM’s BlackBerry to keep holding the grounds. Recent stats gathered by comScore shows that in July 2011, approximately 82.2 million people in the U.S own an Android or iPhone, thus showing a 10% increase as compared to April 2011.

Wow! In just 2 months time, the Smartphone market for Google and Apple has surely become gigantic. But for RIM BlackBerry smartphones, the stats are not that much promising. According to comScore, Google is ruling the market with 41.8% market share (gone up from 36.4% in April), while Apple lands on the second slot with 27% market share (gone up from 26%).

Now, where does RIM’s BlackBerry fit in? Well, frankly not anywhere near to Google and Apple. The market shares for BlackBerry smartphone dropped from 25.7% to 21.7% in a short span of just 3 months. Moreover, no new versions are coming up and the apps for BlackBerry have become stagnant with no latest updates at all. Pretty disturbing scenario for BlackBerry developers who have experienced this downfall in the past as well.

The data collected by comScore shows a clear downfall of RIM’s Blackberry in the smartphone market, how? According to the facts stated in the report, approximately 234 million Americans aged 13 or above own a mobile phone, not necessarily a smartphone. Samsung gets the lead here with a 25.5% share of U.S mobile subscribers as compared to LG and Motorola with 20.9% and 14.1% respectively. Apple gets the forth position with 9.5% of the total market. RIM lands on the 5^th spot with 7.6% market share. Not that impressive!

What will be the future of mobile market in the coming years? Well, it’s hard to predict. That’s why giving up on BlackBerry according to these facts and figures didn’t appeal us much. So, we are hopeful and our FriendCaller for BlackBerry app will soon be launched with all the latest VoIP features.

 Although there’s a rumor about Windows Phone taking over iOS by 2015, but this seems dubious to us even if it’s Nokia Windows Phone 7. As for now, Android and iPhone continue to dominate the Smartphone market. Let’s wait and watch what the future unfolds!