http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-18720565
5 July 2012 Last updated at 12:14
Android smartphones 'used for botnet', researchers say
Smartphones running Google's Android software have been hijacked by an
illegal botnet, according to a Microsoft researcher.
The Google platform has suffered from several high-profile issues with
malware affected apps in recent months.
"We've all heard the rumours," Mr Zink wrote in a blog post.
"But this is the first time I have seen it - a spammer has control of
a botnet that lives on Android devices.
"These devices login to the user's Yahoo Mail account and send spam."
"We are committed to providing a secure experience for consumers in
Google Play, and in fact our data shows between the first and second
halves of 2011, we saw a 40% decrease in the number of potentially
malicious downloads from Google Play," a spokesman said.
"Last year we also introduced a new service into Google Play that
provides automated scanning for potentially malicious software without
disrupting the user experience or requiring developers to go through
an application approval process."