The Four Horsemen: Malware on Mobile Phones in 2009-2010

This talk selects four malware targeting mobile phone platforms, currently among the most prevalent. A technical description is provided for each: how it infects the phone, its malicious payload and propagation mechanism. The descriptions in this paper are mostly new. Finally, we conclude on two common trends: the simplicity of such malware - only little skills are required to implement them - and their monetization. There are so many mobile phone users that malware authors have the opportunity to get quickly rich. So, in the end, the funeral is for the user's bank account...


This talk selects four malware targeting mobile phone platforms, currently among the most prevalent. A technical description is provided for each: how it infects the phone, its malicious payload and propagation mechanism. The descriptions in this paper are mostly new. Finally, we conclude on two common trends: the simplicity of such malware - only little skills are required to implement them - and their monetization. There are so many mobile phone users that malware authors have the opportunity to get quickly rich. So, in the end, the funeral is for the user's bank account...

References

Confidence 2010