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Total Telecom: Android tops McAfee's mobile malware rankings

Security firm's Q2 threat report warns attacks on smartphones becoming more sophisticated.

Google's Android OS became the most popular target for malicious mobile software during the second quarter of 2011, overtaking Symbian, according to McAfee.

The security software giant revealed in its Q2 threat report published on Tuesday that the amount of malware created to run on Android was three times that designed to hit second-placed Java Micro Edition (J2ME) – a mobile software development environment. Symbian and BlackBerry rank third and fourth respectively, while Apple's iOS did not feature at all.

"This year we've seen record breaking numbers of malware, especially on mobile devices, where the uptick is in direct correlation to popularity," said Vincent Weafer, senior vice president of McAfee labs, in a statement.

The majority of Android threats McAfee detailed in its report were disguised as legitimate applications aimed at tricking users into downloading them, including one claiming to be an official update to Rovio's popular Angry Birds game. Once installed, the malware can be used for a number of purposes, such as sending sensitive information to the attacker, or for sending text messages to premium rate numbers.

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