Google Beefs Up Security on Its Android Market

Google said it has beefed up security on its Android mobile-device software to better prevent "malicious" software from residing in its app store.

Hiroshi Lockheimer, Android's vice president of engineering, said that Google last year began automatically scanning Android Market apps for malicious software, including "spyware" and "trojans." The comments follow pronouncements by companies such as Juniper Networks Inc. and Lookout -- both of which sell online-security services -- that claimed last year that a growing number of malicious apps were appearing on the Android Market, where hundreds of thousands of apps are available for download. Google's comments also come after several instances where Google said it removed malicious apps from the Android Market after they had been downloaded to thousands of devices.