Malicious file protection for mobile devices introduced by Check Point

Check Point Software Technologies Ltd., a global provider of cyber security solutions, announced the release of the most comprehensive cyber protection against mobile-related threats with a new version of Harmony Mobile that prevents malicious file downloads. Harmony Mobile is the industry’s first mobile threat solution to prevent the download of malicious files to mobile devices. To provide the most comprehensive mobile security solution, the release extends Harmony Mobile with additional security capabilities such as operating system vulnerability assessment, advanced mitigation capabilities on Samsung devices, easy-to-manage HTTPS inspection, and more.

Employees are increasingly using mobile devices to perform critical business tasks or to access and share sensitive company information as the world shifts to remote and hybrid working. As a result, employee mobile devices have become a popular entry point for cybercriminals. According to Check Point Research (CPR), almost all organizations (97 percent) have faced mobile threats from all vectors in the last two years, with file download being one of the most overlooked vectors. Indeed, CPR discovered a critical vulnerability in the Instagram app that would have allowed an attacker to take over a victim’s account and turn their phone into a spying tool by simply sending them a malicious image file.

Harmony Mobile’s new File Protection uses Check Point’s Threat Cloud to scan downloaded files for malicious intent. If such an intent is detected, the download is completely blocked, and the malicious file never reaches the device. On Android devices, Harmony Mobile can also scan files in the device’s on-device storage and notify both the user and the admin if any malicious files are discovered. The user will be advised to delete the file, and the admin can choose to restrict the device’s access to corporate resources.

Rafi Kretchmer, VP of Product Marketing at Check Point Software Technologies commented: “Most mobile security solutions that are on the market today can only scan files that are related to the mobile operating system, such as apps and iOS profiles. This does not protect your mobile from other malicious file types such as executables, MS Office files, PDFs and more. As we are becoming more reliant on mobiles, cybercriminals are increasingly targeting them and so it has never been more important to have a robust mobile security solution that protects you from any type of file.” 

The new Harmony Mobile Release 4.0 also includes integration with Samsung Knox for unique mitigation capabilities, OS CVE Assessment to allow admins to understand and remediate vulnerabilities in the organization’s mobile fleet, automated certificate deployments for simplified management, and more as part of Check Point’s drive to improve mobile security.