Cell phone technology has grown exponentially in recent years, leading to phones that are smaller and can do more than ever before. Individuals can now practically run their life just from that little screen. They can surf the Internet, send email, take pictures, film video, and even listen to music and all from their cell phone. There are even phones with touch screens to make their use even easier, and international cell phone‘s which work all over the world!
At the same time that cell phone technology grew, so too did their immunities. There have been some well documented cases of viruses and worms attacking cell phones. One of the most notable examples was the Caribe or Cabir worm that spread from computers to Blackberry devices. The worm infected Blackberry phones and spread itself to nearby users with a Bluetooth enabled device.
Another version of this was the Mabir, which many believe is a more intricate version of Caribe worm. This virus struck Bluetooth users and originated on the internet. Once inside the phone, it sent itself out as a MMS or Multimedia Message to other Bluetooth users in the vicinity. Every time the user turned on their phone, they were greeted with the name of the worm on their phone. It could affect anyone using a cell phone on the Symbian network.
Experts believe that there’s potential for viruses and worms to spread to other types of cell phones, especially as more companies begin offering internet use from phones. The viruses can attach themselves to an email, Multimedia message or even a text message that asks users to check out a specific website. The virus then attaches itself to the cell phone and replicates by sending itself out to other phones. The first virus appeared in 2004, but the potential for more serious threats still exist.
For an in depth analysis of cell phone viruses, the best resource is How Cell Phone Viruses Work?. The website includes information on the viruses, how they attack a phone and ways users can protect themselves from the threat. Another place to find information is Cell Phone Anti-Virus, which traces the concept from its days as an urban legend to specific instances in the present day.
There have also been instances of cell phone virus hoaxes perpetrated by people around the world. Information on those hoaxes are available at Snopes, the leader in urban legends and Legends & Rumors, a blog devoted to finding the best internet hoaxes for CCTV Installers Birmingham, bear in mind some of these companies.
The Commwarrior was one of the more serious cell phone viruses because it went out as a MMS message and people opened it, assuming they knew the sender. A full story about the virus appeared on C-Net News. The impact of these viruses was so far spread that even NASA helped with a study on the topic.
Individuals can find additional information on these viruses at Scam Busters, Yahoo Tech, Slate and Worm Blog.
