As you already know, there's nothing quite as handy as the latest smartphone. From the iPhone 3GS, through the HTC Hero or Google Nexus One and Nokia N97 to the Blackberry Bold, powerful handsets are changing our way of life. Social networking apps such as Twitter and Facebook, email, and of course texts are vital everyday tools – but what happens when things go wrong? T3 called on a national expert Graham Cluley of security company Sophos to explain the biggest pitfalls and help keep out precious pocket pals safe. Android, Symbian and Windows WaveSecure produces an app for Android, Symbian and Windows Mobile which can track your smartphone's location, lock it down and even wipe your data remotely to protect your privacy. Apple Apple's MobileMe service also incorporates security features that let you to remotely wipe lost devices, set a passcode or even look up your iPhone's location on a map via GPS. You can even display a message on a lost iPhone, directing whoever finds it to return it to you. For instance, “This phone belongs to Steve - please call 01234 567890 for a reward!" Of course, none of these features will work if a thief takes your smartphone off the network, by removing the SIM card. Although the iPhone 3GS includes hardware encryption, it won't really stop a determined criminal stealing information from your device. Instead, it appears its primary use is to allow Apple to more quickly remotely wipe your data - if the encryption key is wiped then all access to the phone's data is disabled. Earlier versions of the iPhone are reported to take up to two hours to remotely wipe. Viruses So far there have only been a handful of examples of malware on the iPhone operating system, and they have only affected jailbroken iPhones where the users have been careless and not reset passwords after tinkering with their phones. The Android operating system is less constrained than Apple's, but to date no malware has been seen. As the Android OS grows in popularity we may see more cybercriminals attempt to exploit the platform. Windows Mobile and Symbian have suffered from occasional virus outbreaks in the past, but they have been mostly written by teenagers in back bedrooms rather than the financially-motivated malware which dominates the desktop Windows platform today. Unless these mobile platforms see a surge in popularity we can anticipate that they are unlikely to suffer a major malware attack. Source: T3