Christian ColladoDoid Compart

We review the advantages or disadvantages that an antivirus can have on an Android mobile, and we help you decide if it is really necessary.

Each year 1 or 2 "viruses" appear important for mobile.One of the most popular of recent times was the famous Stagerfright that we talked about a few years ago, which again opened about whether it is necessary to install antivirus for Android, whether free, or paid.

Yes, today the system is safe, but still, there are several computer security companies that have developed their own Android antivirus in Spanish, such as AVG antivirus or avast.

The theoretical function of these applications is to protect us from all kinds of malware, phishing and other family.The point is that the amount of really dangerous malicious software that can damage a phone is very small, and therefore, rough mode, the Android terminals do not be in danger of being infected.

For this reason, a virus that propagates becomes "famous", such as the one cited at the beginning, since it is uncommon in Android to suffer attacks of this type.And the reason why it is not common is not thanks to those antivirus that some sell as the solution to all our ills.Moreover, these applications are not able to detect a really powerful virus in our terminal.

With this we are not saying that they do not fulfill their function.These applications work and react well in front of basic or disuse malware, such as "monitoring cookies or known malicious programs.But many of them have extra added tools, such as the typical and useless RAM cleaning, or hardware acceleration.Although they also have others that can be useful at a given time, such as the release of storage space.

Android and Malware, two old acquaintances

Malware is defined, understanding its direct etymology of English, such as Malicious Software.That is, it is malicious software that tries to infect your device, be it a PC, a smartphone or any other electronic device that can be attacked.At the beginning of the Google operating system, there was enough hysteria with this topic, and looking for the best free Android antivirus began to become more than a custom.

Denying that there is malware on Android would have no sense, since it does exist.However, it does not work the same as in the computers, because in these, in Android an application cannot work if we do not give permission.In a PC, it is not strange that when navigating a web page we are downloaded an executable file-it occurs mainly to users with less practice, obviously-and if you have bad luck, this can be lodged on your machine withoutWhat do you realize.

If we navigate somewhere insecure and an APK tries to download, first of all, the user has to authorize the browser to download the file, and subsequently must manually install the APK.Android's security prevents APK files from being installed automatically, so everything that is staying in your terminal is your responsibility.

How can I infect myself?

This is precisely the double -edged edge of Android, the APK.On many occasions, we look for free or modified versions of some applications that are in the Play Store, and it is extremely simple.

On the other hand, and something more difficult to eliminate, there is the malware housed in the play store.Although Google's security controls are increasing.It would not be the first time that hundreds of malicious applications are discovered that, of course, Google withdraws from the store once located.

What is the best antivirus for Android for free?The answer is in you

Luckily, the Android permits management system allows us to identify a virus on our phones, or at least suspect that it can be.As you will know, this permissions management in Android is manual, that is, so that an app can access the GPS, telephone, camera and others, you must accept one by one these permits both when installing it in APK format, andThe time to execute it directly if it comes from the play store.

If you download a flashlight application, it makes no sense that the package asks for access to calls.If you download a calculator app, it makes no sense to ask for camera permits.In general, it is quite easy to detect the bad intentions of some developers, except for certain cases in which we have no escape.

There are also times when applications that do not ask for extra permissions, and that have "normal" behavior, collect information about us, to send it to external servers.Unfortunately, there is no way to discover this type of malicious software, although, luckily, it is less and less frequent.To avoid this, we always recommend using the basic applications that come with your phone, and not replace them with other third parties.

Thus, common sense plays a fundamental role in this phase.Although it can be tedious on some occasions, we will not lose more than a few minutes to review the permissions well requesting the application that we are going to install.And if it does not inspire confidence or see something strange, we will have to avoid installing it.

I have erased the infected app, but I still infected

In the event that you have had the bad luck that your smartphone has been infected with the installation of an app, and or erase it, do not worry, do not worry, because there are solutions.In Android there are always residual folders, in which you can continue to house files, in this case malicious.It can become quite complicated to find the route on which the files that infect you are still housed, so in these cases, the best is a factory reestablishment.

If you have re -established the phone and continue infected, try to install a new rom.With a clean ROM installed from scratch, your device will work again as before having been infected.

So why are there antivirus apps on Android, and how do they work?

Download an antivirus for Android is normal for millions of users, mainly due to the lack of information and fear that "between" a virus.Therefore, many of the developers who create these products for computers, also develop their mobile version, and some of them have thousands of downloads.

As we have said during the article, these apps can be useful in certain circumstances, but you have to emphasize the extra consumption of resources from the terminal that implies having them installed, spending large amounts of battery, RAM and, ultimately, wearing performance.

On the other hand, if the antivirus detects some unusual permission, it will notify you that the application is a virus, but it will not always be so.False positives are usually common, since many antivirus consider any app that installs apart from Google Play.

In conclusion, should I worry about Android viruses?

No, no, you don't have to worry about Android viruses.You simply, you must use the mobile phone with caution, as with any other electronic device.If you find an intrusive page sailing, call it from the eyelashes.If an APK tries to settle without your permission, reject the installation, and if you installed a Google store application you have proven a strange behavior of the terminal, bórrala immediately.

The infinite Android applications catalog makes it easy to find malicious content, but common sense is much stronger than an antivirus.Responsible for your mobile, avoid any type of malicious application, so download only the applications that are really necessary, do not navigate for suspicious pages, and enjoy your mobile, since absolutely nothing will happen to it.

For all this, the best antivirus for your Android is yourself, and free!.

Related topics: Android, applications