Mini Miscreants Target Mobile - Roundup
07 August 2006
Telecoms Special Features
While the debate over mobile security rages, we thought we'd take you on a stroll down Malware Lane, point out the most interesting spots and get you the facts on what nasties are targeting the mobile.
Cabir: The first mobile device virus to fulfil the technical definition of a virus, Cabir (aka Caribe) attacked Symbian OS devices with their Bluetooth radios on and discoverable. It would then attempt to send itself to any other Bluetooth device in range, disabling most phone functions and displaying the message "Caribe!!!" on-screen. Code from Cabir is found in most other mobile malware with selfreplicating capabilities.
Mosquitoes: The first mobile device malware with a malicious payload aimed at making money. This Trojan was concealed in a modified version of the game of the same name. When installed on a Symbian Series 60 device, it would send SMS messages to premium numbers hardcoded in the program. Unsurprisingly, the network operator involved blocked the pSMS numbers before any significant amount of money was stolen.
Commwarrior: The first mobile worm, capable of spreading over wide-area networks as an MMS message. Based on a virus originally written to attack EPOC operating systems on Psion handheld devices, it was technically a Trojan as user intervention is required to install it. However, the filename is randomised in order to disguise its true aims. Once installed it sends infected MMS messages to all contacts on the phone.
Onehop.A: Symbian S60 trojan, spread by Bluetooth ad-hoc networking. A development of Bootton.A, it installs Bootton as a malicious payload, causing the phone to reboot every time a key is pressed and meanwhile distributes itself to any other device in range.
Multidropper.A: Yet another Trojan, this attacker discovered in September, 2005 is the first multi-dropper known on mobile devices. It installs a variety of mobile device virii, including both Cabir and Commwarrior, and also two MS Windows-targetting worms well known in the PC space. This probably marks the beginning of cross-platform malware in mobile devices.
Other articles in this Special Feature:
