A major BlackBerry security vulnerability was revealed earlier this year at a hacker convention in Las Vegas, demonstrating the growing concern over mobile viruses and proprietary data protection. According to research from the SMobile Threat Center, the mobile threat has seen a twenty-fold increase in recent years, from just 8 viruses detected in 2003 to more than 162 found in 2006 alone -- resulting in a total of nearly 400 mobile viruses on the market to date. Juniper Research recently noted that anti-virus, anti-spam, anti- spyware, and content filtering will make up 40 percent of what is expected to be a $5 billion market by 2011.
"The BlackBerry Pearl is sure to be a popular gift item this holiday season -- so it should be a top priority for consumer and business users alike to protect their new investment by securing it from any possibility of viruses or other intrusions," said George Tuvell, CEO of SMobile Systems. "VirusGuard defends against potential viruses delivered through virtually any feature that BlackBerry supports -- whether it's email, text messages, Internet downloads, WiFi connectivity, or PC synchronization -- so users can have confidence in the security of their mobile devices while enjoying the full BlackBerry experience."
VirusGuard stops malware and other threats at the handset -- so users can continue to utilize and enjoy the full functionality of their BlackBerry devices. In contrast, security measures instituted at the corporate network level typically require IT administrators to enforce strict device capability limitations, such as prohibiting the downloading of third-party applications onto the device. This potentially blocks users' access to key applications that would otherwise improve job performance and increase productivity.
Unlike other solutions, VirusGuard for BlackBerry carries an extremely light footprint, with zero impact on device performance. VirusGuard continuously scans for malicious content in real-time, both on-demand and on- access - instantly alerting BlackBerry users to any potential vulnerability. Updated virus definitions can be downloaded over-the-air to offer complete protection against the latest threats. All activity is logged in the application's log files, recording the date and time of any scan performed, along with any virus activity detected and resolved during a scan.