How to avoid ransomware attacks on Android smartphones

The ransomware virus is starting to attack smartphones and Android as well. To defend your device you need to update your apps and OS.

Ransomware, the ransomware virus, is among us. There's no point in hiding, malware that encrypts our data and demands a ransom in Bitcoin is a reality that we have to defend ourselves against every day. They mainly affect Windows, but now also Android.

We start by saying that this kind of viruses are not based on tools that are impossible to decipher and predict. On the contrary, their spread is often based on the lack of attention that computer and smartphone users pay to computer security. Installing a good antivirus is often not enough. To avoid becoming a victim of a ransomware attack you don't have to be a computer security expert.

How to recognize malicious Android apps

As we have seen several times most Android ransomware hides behind malicious apps on the Google Play Store. To improve its defense systems Big G is continuously improving its algorithms to avoid having its users suffer too many hacker attacks. But it is the users who need to check the reliability of the app before downloading it. The easiest way is to monitor the description, feedback from other users and above all pay close attention to the permissions the app requires before downloading. We also avoid downloading unofficial apps that are offered to us from stores other than the Google Play Store.

Constantly update

To avoid a hacker attack, and therefore ransomware, is to constantly update the operating system and installed applications. In case we have an antivirus installed on our Android smartphone let's periodically remember to check if there are security updates to download. These small gestures only take a few minutes but most people consider them a useless waste of time. This is absolutely not the case. Updating all the software on our phone is making life more difficult for cyber criminals.

Watch out for websites

The last simple tip to put into practice is to check the links before clicking. Let's not assume that every Internet site is safe. Many URLs on the web are nothing more than traps set there by cyber criminals. Malware can infect your smartphone just by clicking on a malicious URL. Before clicking on the link, let's do a special check with antivirus or an online search of the domain. There are several sites on the net that report all portals and malicious URLs.