UK-based cybersecurity services provider Netcraft on Monday announced the launch of a new mobile application designed to protect users against phishing and other threats.
Netcraft has pointed out that the mobile versions of popular web browsers don’t provide the same level of protection against phishing attacks as the desktop versions. According to the company, a study it carried out last year showed that browsers running on Android and iOS devices blocked a “tiny fraction” of the malicious sites blocked by their desktop versions.
The app it has developed, named Netcraft Phishing and Malware Protection, is designed to prevent users from accessing malicious websites based on data from the company’s anti-phishing feed.
Launched in 2005, Netcraft’s anti-phishing system is powered by a database of more than 56 million unique phishing websites. The database, which is constantly growing based on reports from its users, is utilized by all major web browsers and licensed by many companies specializing in security, content filtering, and web hosting.
The new mobile app works with several browsers, including Chrome, Firefox, Opera, Edge, UC, and the Samsung browser. Additionally, it protects users against threats in the Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, Twitter, Snapchat, Slack, Reddit and other apps.
The application is designed to block phishing and malware sites when users browse the web, and alerts the user when a phishing URL is detected in an SMS message. Users are provided information on the number of blocked threats.
The Android version of the app is currently on Google Play and it should become available in the Amazon Appstore shortly. An iOS version is also expected to be released soon.
The app can be used for free for 28 days, after which users can acquire a monthly or annual subscription. The app can be used for free to report phishing attacks to Netcraft.
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Eduard Kovacs (@EduardKovacs) is a contributing editor at SecurityWeek. He worked as a high school IT teacher for two years before starting a career in journalism as Softpedia’s security news reporter. Eduard holds a bachelor’s degree in industrial informatics and a master’s degree in computer techniques applied in electrical engineering.
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