by Last year, Apple executive Phil Schiller tweeted a link to a research report that noted significant growth in mobile malware, particularly on Android. The report found that Android accounted for 79 percent of mobile threats, with just 0.7 percent attacking iOS.
Today, Schiller followed up, tweeting a link to Cisco’s 2014 Annual Security Report. The report, which came out late last week, notes that while overall vulnerabilities are highest since tracking began in 2000, 99 percent of all mobile malware targeted Android devices — leaving iOS devices relatively unscathed thanks to Apple’s controlling mobile ecosystem.
The report does note that many mobile users encounter phishing or other social engineering websites, something that Apple’s security protocols won’t necessarily protect users from.
Not all mobile malware is designed to target specific devices, however. Many encounters involve phishing, likejacking, or other social engineering ruses, or forcible redirects to websites other than expected. An analysis of user agents by Cisco TRAC/SIO reveals that Android users, at 71 percent, have the highest encounter rates with all forms of web-delivered malware, followed by Apple iPhone users with 14 percent of all web malware encounters.
Cisco 2014 Security Report http://t.co/rd6M6yUXnU
— Philip Schiller (@pschiller) January 21, 2014Other than that specific mention of social engineering — and that spam messages mention Apple Gift Cards — the Cisco report does not mention Apple or the Mac or iOS at all. The tweet is likely part of a larger push by Apple to share more favorable third-party reports about the company and its products.
