News
AdaptiveMobile acquires Sentry Wireless
June 2011 by Emmanuelle Lamandé
AdaptiveMobile announces the acquisition of Sentry Wireless, a developer of handset based mobile security applications. Sentry’s market-leading technology will be integrated into AdaptiveMobile’s Network Protection Platform to give mobile operators visibility when subscriber handsets become infected by rogue mobile applications and viruses, and limit subscriber loss of data and credit.
Following consumer research from AdaptiveMobile that identified that consumers now fear spyware, rogue apps and loss of data more than they do the loss of the handset itself, operators are looking for an all embracing security platform that will help them preserve subscriber trust in the network. Through the acquisition of Sentry Wireless, AdaptiveMobile will provide operators with white-label applications that subscribers can use to report SMS spam, check the validity of a downloaded app, and be notified securely by their operator if their handset is detected to be compromised.
In addition, the handset applications will allow individual subscribers and their children or companies and their employees greater control of who can contact them, when and for what reason. This unique combination of handset based policy management and network-centric enforcement enables mobile operators to step up and cater for customers who are looking towards mobile operators to provide them with protection against mobile threats.
The research also confirmed that cybercriminals are shifting their focus to smartphones and tablets with mobile malware alone up by 33 per cent in 2010 from the previous year, with particular focus on new mobile operating systems such as Android. This focus is driven by the greater potential for return from illicit activity on mobile networks, with criminals taking advantage of existing mechanisms to extract money such as premium rate numbers and SMS shortcodes.
The risk for consumers is that “free” mobile security apps advertised online can be hostile applications that will infect the device, and that SMS notifications from operators may be faked. As a result of the acquisition of Sentry Wireless, as well as protecting their subscriber base from the core of the network, mobile operators will now also be able to provide secure and timely feedback to their subscribers when they become infected, and where necessary disinfect comprised devices on their network through a patented disinfection process to remove malicious software and rogue applications.
