PARIS, Feb. 12, 2015 /PRNewswire/
-- Alcatel-Lucent (Euronext Paris and NYSE: ALU) today
released figures showing that security threats to mobile and
residential devices and attacks on communications networks rose in
2014, threatening personal and corporate privacy and
information.
Alcatel-Lucent's Motive® Security Labs estimates 16 million
mobile devices worldwide have been infected by malicious software –
or "malware" - used by cybercriminals for corporate and personal
espionage, information theft, denial of service attacks on
businesses and governments, and banking and advertising scams.
The report also found that consumers who avoid shopping online
out of fear their credit or debit card information may be stolen
are actually exposing themselves to greater risk: a rash of retail
cyber-security breaches in 2014 were all the result of malware
infections on cash registers or point-of-sale terminals, not online
stores. This is largely because stolen cards from online retailers
are not as valuable to criminals because they can only be used for
online purchases.
The Motive Security Labs report – which looked at all popular
mobile device platforms - found that such malware infections in
mobile devices increased 25% in 2014, compared to a 20% increase in
2013. Android™ devices have now caught up with Windows™ laptops,
which had been the primary workhorse of cybercrime, with infection
rates between Android and Windows devices split 50/50 in 2014.
While less than 1% of infections come from iPhone® and
Blackberry® smartphones, new vulnerabilities emerged
last year to show they are not immune to malware
threats.
Malware growth continues to be aided by the fact that a vast
majority of mobile device owners do not take proper device security
precautions. A recent Motive Security Labs survey found that 65% of
subscribers instead expect their service provider to protect both
their mobile and home devices. Motive's malware report concluded
that infection rates in residential networks also rose
significantly in 2014, with malware found in 13.6% of residences,
an increase of 5% over the previous year.
"With malware attacks on devices steadily rising with consumer
ultra-broadband usage, the impact on customer experience becomes a
primary concern for service providers," said Patrick Tan, General Manager of Network
Intelligence at Alcatel-Lucent. "As a result, we're seeing more
operators take a proactive approach to this problem by providing
services that alert subscribers to malware on their devices along
with self-help instructions for removing it."
Other Motive Security Lab report highlights include:
- The mobile infection rate in 2014 is 0.68%. Based on this
Alcatel-Lucent estimates that worldwide, about 16 million mobile
devices are infected by malware.
- Mobile malware is increasing in sophistication with more robust
command and control protocols
- Mobile spyware, used to spy on a phone's owner, is also on the
increase. It tracks the phone's location, monitors ingoing and
outgoing calls, text messages, e-mail and tracks web browsing.
- The overall monthly infection rate in residential fixed
broadband networks is just under 14%. This is up substantially from
the 9% seen in 2013. This is mostly attributable to an increase in
infections by moderate threat level adware.
- High-level threats such as 'bots', 'rootkits', and 'banking
trojans' remain steady at around 5%.
The Motive Security Labs report also noted in 2014 an increase
in Distributed Denial of Service (DDOS) attacks using network
infrastructure components such as home routers, DSL modems, cable
modems, mobile WiFi™ hotspots, DNS servers and NTP servers.
Additionally, the first DDOS attacks launched from mobile phones
took place, suggesting how so-called 'hactivism' movements against
the mobile infrastructure might be launched in the future.
ABOUT MOTIVE® SECURITY LABS
Motive Security
Labs (formerly Kindsight Security Labs), processes more than
120,000 new malware samples per day and maintains a library of over
30 million active samples. Due to Alcatel-Lucent's unique position
within communication networks, it can measure the impact of mobile
and home device traffic moving over those networks to identify
malicious and cyber-security threats. Motive Security Labs is an
analytics arm of Motive Customer Experience Management.
Helpful Links:
- Motive Security Labs Malware Report – H2 2014
- Blog: Under attack -- Malware invades our devices, data and
privacy in 2014
- Motive Security Guardian
About Alcatel-Lucent (Euronext Paris and NYSE:
ALU)
Alcatel-Lucent is the leading IP
networking, ultra-broadband access and cloud technology specialist.
We are dedicated to making global communications more innovative,
sustainable and accessible for people, businesses and governments
worldwide. Our mission is to invent and deliver trusted networks to
help our customers unleash their value. Every success has its
network.
For more information, visit Alcatel-Lucent on:
http://www.alcatel-lucent.com, read the latest posts on the
Alcatel-Lucent blog http://www.alcatel-lucent.com/blog and follow
the Company on Twitter:
http://twitter.com/Alcatel_Lucent.
To view the original version on PR Newswire,
visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/alcatel-lucent-report-on-malware-in-2014-sees-rise-in-device-and-network-attacks-that-place-personal-and-workplace-privacy-at-risk-300035137.html
SOURCE Alcatel-Lucent