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Trend Micro focuses on Facebook with latest mobile security development

Trend Micro is trying to cover two bases at once with a new security development aimed to secure up both Facebook and Android smartphones.
Written by Rachel King, Contributor

Trend Micro is rolling out the latest version of its mobile security software, inspired by the onslaught of malware aimed at Android as well as privacy concerns surrounding Facebook.

Khoi Nguyen, head of Trend Micro’s global consumer mobile business unit, cited in the announcement that more than 350,000 unique Android malware apps have been discovered worldwide over the last 12 to 18 months.

He followed up by predicting that there will be "at least one million malicious and high risk Android applications in the wild" by the end of this year.

Facebook ties in as Trend Micro asserted that approximately 680 million of the one billion active users on the world's largest social network access the service on their mobile devices.

The natural connection is that leads to a lot of personal data at risk -- especially if users don't understand or set up their privacy settings.

Thus, version 3.0 of Trend Micro Mobile Security has been designed to extend protection on Android smartphones and tablets to the Facebook app with faster malware scanning and the ability to backup a user's data in Trend Micro's cloud.

This also includes the new Trend Micro Privacy Scanner, a free app designed for use with Facebook in which the program examines the user's Facebook privacy settings and offers tips for improvement. From there, users can manage personal information and access in the same app.

Technically, the latter half of this process can also be done on Facebook itself, but Trend Micro is trying to differentiate its service with the consulting feature.

Trend Micro Mobile Security v3.0 is now available on Google Play for $29.99.

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