Five things you need to know about Android phones

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Android is the most popular mobile phone operating system in the world. The tool has more than 2.5 billion users, according to an announcement made during Google I / O 2019. However, some important features may go unnoticed by those who use the system on a daily basis.

READ: Google causes controversy when banning app for Android; Look

Variations by cell phone manufacturers, non-homogeneous update distribution and malware capable of stealing security codes are among the little-publicized and commented facts. Check out five things you need to know about Android phones in the list below.

1 of 5 Android is Google’s operating system for mobile phones – Photo: Pedro Vital / dnetc

Android is Google’s operating system for mobile phones – Photo: Pedro Vital / dnetc

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1. Android has variations by cellphone manufacturers

Android is an open source operating system – meaning cell phone manufacturers can make some changes to the original software. This is the case of Samsung (OneUI), Huawei (EMUI), Xiaomi (MIUI) and OnePlus (OxygenOS), for example. The main changes are usually in the cell phone interface, creating characteristics that are specific to each company.

The risk of these changes lies in the security vulnerabilities that the smartphone may have. Between episodes, it is possible to mention cases such as the Galaxy A50, where personalized cell phone drivers created a memory bug, requiring a patch later. Samsung also has features to protect the device against hackers at the core of the operating system, since the possible invasion only occurs due to changes made to Android.

2 out of 5 Xiaomi has a personalized graphical interface on Android, called MIUI – Photo: Bruno De Blasi / dnetc

Xiaomi has a personalized graphical user interface on Android, called MIUI – Photo: Bruno De Blasi / dnetc

2. Distribution of Android updates is not homogeneous

The distribution of Android updates does not happen homogeneously. This is because the system runs on devices of different brands, and each manufacturer takes some time to adapt to Android, including extra costs. In addition, cell phones with very old models are not compatible with the latest versions of the operating system and do not receive the updates.

During the period without updates, the phone may be vulnerable to hacker attacks, as smartphones do not receive new security protocols and integrated protection. According to research carried out by Which?, more than 1 billion Android devices worldwide face this risk. The analysis also shows that two out of five cell phones with the system no longer receive updates vital security.

3 out of 5 Old Android devices are more vulnerable to hacker attacks – Photo: Carolina Ochsendorf / dnetc

Old Android devices are more vulnerable to hacker attacks – Photo: Carolina Ochsendorf / dnetc

3. Google has native antivirus for Android

Google offers a native antivirus on Android devices, called Google Play Protect. When you download an application from the Google Play Store, the program undergoes an automatic security check. However, tests carried out by the German antivirus testing organization AV-TEST revealed that Play Protect had the worst performance among 17 antivirus available for the system.

In the tests, the programs should identify about 6,700 applications with malware. The objective was to determine protection, performance and usability indexes for each antivirus, with these factors having a value of up to six points in each of the three categories. The maximum possible score to reach was 18, but Play Protect scored only six points in total.

4 out of 5 Google Play Protect is Android’s native antivirus – Photo: Disclosure / Google

Google Play Protect is Android’s native antivirus – Photo: Disclosure / Google

4. Authenticator brings an extra layer of security, but may fail

Gooogle Authenticator is an application for Android and iPhone (iOS) that allows you to add an extra layer of security to log in to various services with two-factor authentication. However, the mobile security company ThreatFabric discovered, in February, malware capable of invading the app and stealing generated codes. According to the report, Cerberus could use accessibility privileges to steal the program’s 2FA codes.

After an Android user is infected with the malware, criminals can connect to the phone to capture the screen with the unique code and gain access to users’ accounts. Google’s failure would be that it did not create a feature to prevent applications from printing certain applications of the operating system.

5 out of 5 Android flaw affects two-step authentication – Photo: Luciana Maline / dnetc

Android flaw affects two-step authentication – Photo: Luciana Maline / dnetc

5. Android has encryption to protect data

Encryption consists of techniques to protect users’ data on mobile phones and other devices. Android uses dm-crypt, which is the standard disk system in the Linux kernel. The service stores the data of the cell phone in an unreadable way for an external agent, bringing protection to the files and more privacy to the users.

With encryption, the attacker is prevented from accessing smartphone information, as he does not have the right code to connect to the cell phone. A negative factor is that extra security can slow the device down, as the function requires more processing, resulting in shorter battery life. On newer devices, the slowness is not very expressive, but it still happens.

How to remove viruses on an Android phone

How to remove viruses on an Android phone