Just like it is possible for a computer system to get infected through a USB drive or any other type of device that contained a virus or any other type of malicious software, your Android device, too, can get infected if it is attached to another device or system that already hosts malware. For this reason, it is important to only connect your Android devices to systems and other devices that are trusted and free from any potential threats.
Now that you’re aware of the different ways in which malware can enter and start affecting your Android devices, you’re probably even more concerned about the safety of your phones and tablets. However, you’ll be glad to know that the former Chief Security Engineer for Android, Adrian Lugwig, has stated that the average Android user is not required to download antivirus software for Android to keep their devices safe.
Even though most people question the accuracy of this statement even though it comes from a Google employee, the fact remains that there are plenty of other things that you can do besides downloading antivirus for Android that can protect your devices from threats.
While quite a number of software posing as antivirus for Android are fake, even the ones that do work are not effective enough to remove all of the malware or viruses from Android devices. As a result, the Android device on which the antivirus software has been installed not only becomes extremely slow due to the constant processing of the software, but the ineffective antivirus also consumes most of the space of the device. This leaves users unable to download programs and software that they actually need.
In the next section, we’ll be talking all about what you should be doing in order to protect your Android devices from potential threats.