Webroot Strengthens Its Banking Security Portfolio with Mobile Security

BROOMFIELD, Colo., Aug. 2, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Webroot, the first Internet security service company, has today announced it is extending mobile security applications to its partners in banking in order to protect their customers who use tablets and smartphones to conduct mobile banking.

The adoption of mobile browsing, social networks, banking and financial transactions increase the threat of phishing and malicious URLs targeting mobile devices. Leveraging Webroot's anti-malware and cloud-based URL scanning technologies, Webroot is now offering banking customers Webroot® Mobile Security for Android to block threats and malicious applications, and to assess the safety of website links before a person clicks on them. Mobile banking security features such as anti-malware, secure browsing, anti-phishing and application profiling will help prevent the theft of online credentials, and protect against mobile payment compromise. Device Locate and Wipe functions will also protect a customer's personal information in the event a mobile device is lost or stolen. Webroot plans to introduce mobile security applications for additional platforms later this year.

Mobile banking is on the rise and figures for 2010 show an increase of 40% in Europe alone, with approximately 20 million users logging onto their bank accounts from mobile devices in just one month(1). To best service their mobile customers, banks are increasingly offering additional mobile banking services such as mobile online transactions, enabling customers to transfer funds and make payments when on the move. Such services increase customer usage and service accessibility; however they also bring increased fraud risk.

"Cyber criminals are aware of the opportunity presented by the increase in mobile banking and the relatively nascent adoption of security measures to protect mobile devices connecting to the Internet. We have already witnessed the first wave of threats targeting mobile banking customers including variants of the notorious banking trojan Zeus which has been adapted to attack in the mobile environment," said Chad Bacher, vice president of Mobile Solutions for Webroot. "Mobile banking customers want the freedom to access their accounts, move funds and make payments regardless of where they are and what device they're using, without the fear of credential compromise and fraud."

Webroot currently provides leading financial institutions around the world with Internet security solutions to protect their customers from online fraud on their PCs. The addition of Webroot Mobile Security for Android provides another layer of protection that will allow banks to offer the mobile banking services their customers want, without exposing them to the risk of mobile banking fraud.

Webroot Mobile Security for Android is quickly and easily installed on a mobile device, phone or tablet, and will silently protect the customer, not interfering with their normal use of the device. Visit Webroot for more information on Webroot Mobile Security for Android.

(1) ComScore MobiLens report, “Europe Sees 40 Percent Growth in Mobile Banking Through Smartphones,” May 27, 2011

About Webroot

Webroot is a leading provider of Internet security services for consumers and businesses worldwide. Founded in 1997, privately held Webroot is headquartered in Colorado and employs approximately 450 people globally in operations across North America, Europe and the Asia Pacific region. Consistently rated among the best security offerings available, Webroot's products include email, Web and archiving security services for businesses, and anti-malware, privacy and identity protection for consumers. The company has expanded its cloud security portfolio with the recent acquisitions of BrightCloud and Prevx, pioneers in behavior-based malware detection. For more information, visit http://www.webroot.com or call 800.772.9383.

©2011 Webroot Software, Inc. All rights reserved. Webroot is a registered trademark or trademark of Webroot Software, Inc. in the United States and other countries. All other trademarks are properties of their respective owners.

SOURCE Webroot