Kaspersky says that Anti-Virus Mobile uses a combination of real-time antivirus protection and on-demand scanning to protect against threats, and also provides protection from unwanted SMS/MMS messages by blacklisting undesirable phone numbers. The real-time antivirus protection is said to monitor wireless connections and scan EMS/MMS messages, as well any data received from a PC during synchronization.
The software includes an antivirus database update feature that allows updates to either be installed automatically by a built-in scheduler, or on demand, according to Kaspersky. Database updates are downloaded via WAP or HTTP from the company's servers. Additionally, the smartphone's built-in web browser can be used to download updates and view information about any malicious programs detected.
Anti-Virus Mobile includes an anti-spam module to filter out mass mailing and advertising distributed via SMS/MMS based on a user-compiled "blacklist" and "whitelist." Messages from phone numbers on the blacklist are normally filtered out, while messages from numbers on the whitelist are always delivered. Alternative operating modes for the anti-spam module can prompt the user for the disposition of messages from numbers not on either list, or disable filtering altogether, Kaspersky says.
Kaspersky president Steve Orenberg stated, "As smartphones gain broader acceptance and become a more integral way of conducting business, they also become targets for mobile malware writers and hackers. Although today's threats are relatively isolated, the future consequences of mobile malware should be a factor in how people consider using these devices."
AvailabilityAnti-Virus Mobile runs on devices running Windows Mobile 2003 and 5.0, and various Symbian OS versions. Kaspersky says the product will be available in North America sometime in the first quarter, priced around $30.
The company launched an
antivirus pilot project in support of Windows Mobile and Symbian smartphones a little over one year ago.
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