The Android operating system has had yet another serious piece of malware sully its name today, as an Android app called com.google.android.smart has been discovered to be a premium rate texts, calls and botnet scam.

The malware itself has been named RootSmart by Xuxian Jiang who leads the research as assistant professor of NC State University's department of computer science.

The app's first deception is to use the default Android system settings icon as its own, leading users into a false sense of official security. It then waits for an outgoing call before connecting to its own command-and-control server, and then downloads a GingerBreak root exploit.

With the exploit installed, it has free reign to download further dodgy apps which connect to premium rate phone numbers and send premium rate messages.

For the time being, the malware problem seems to be isolated to two Chinese mobile networks, with the app only up for download on third party sites rather than the official Android Marketplace. Devices running Android Gingerbread versions earlier than 2.3.4 or Android Honeycomb 3.0 also seem the only ones affected.

Despite these quite limited channels, Symantec have estimated the app is already making between £1,000 and £5,500 every single day. Jiang urges Android users to remain vigilant, particularly when an app asks a user change permissions on their handsets.

Google have recently upped their own Android malware defences, announcing the launch of the Bouncer programme, which will automatically scan new and existing apps for malware, spyware and trojans.

If you're anything like me, most of my cameraphone shots never end up anywhere other than on my smartphone's screen as I can't be bothered digging out the cables needed to transfer them. A new experimental build of Dropbox for Android may change all that however, as it does all the work automatically.

Dropbox Experimental Android Forum Build 2.0.9 adds a new feature to the cloud storage service that sees your mobile snaps beamed into your Dropbox folder straight after you've snapped a shot, avoiding the need for either cables or an upload manager.

The first picture you send via the new feature bags you 500MB of Dropbox space, which extends by a further 500MB for every 500MB of images you upload, up to a cap of 5GB.

The only limitation in this otherwise superb upgrade is file size; uploads are limited to no bigger than 180MB in size, meaning your HD videos will have to be quite short to get automatically sent.

As it's currently just a beta release, the app hasn't hit the Android Market yet. However, you can grab the experimental build direct from Dropbox by clicking here.

Users of the cloud-based Google Docs word processor app for Android get a useful new feature added to the software today. You'll now be able to access a drop-down menu that allows you to cache files for offline access, allowing you to edit your documents without fear of losing the changes if you're out of range of a web connection.

Those using the app on tablet devices also get an upgrade, with a new high-res page preview option and sideways swiping controls for easier navigation of the app.

"There may be times when you don't have an Internet connection on your Android device, but you still want access to a file you've saved in Google Docs," said software engineer Freeman Liu over on the Google Mobile blog.

"Now you can select any file in Google Docs to make it available offline. So regardless of whether you're connected to the internet, you're always connected to those files.

"Even better, Google Docs automatically updates your offline files when you're on Wi-Fi. You can also manually update files anytime you have a data connection by opening the file or tapping 'Update' from the Offline section of the app."

Gerald takes a look at the new, free Steam Mobile app from Valve, which gives gamers on-the-go access to the popular PC gaming platform.

Running through the features of the Android version (though available on iOS devices like the iPhone and iPod Touch too), Gerald gives an overview of messaging on the app, navigating the store catalogue, checking out purchases and editing profiles and preferences.

Though available to download now from Apple's App Store and the Android Market, Steam Mobile's full features are currently only available to those who have been chosen to beta test the service.

"The Steam app comes from many direct requests from our customers," said Gabe Newell, co-founder and president of Valve.

"Seeing which of your friends are online and playing a game, sending quick messages, looking at screenshots for an upcoming game, or catching a sale - these are all features customers have requested. Mobile is changing the way people interact, play games and consume media, and the Steam app is part of our commitment to meet customer demands and expand the service functionality of Steam to make it richer and more accessible for everyone."

To be in with a chance of trying the service early, download the app now, sign in with your Steam account, and wait for Valve to send you a beta invite.

Hit the video above to see what's going to be on offer.

Valve have announced that their Steam PC gaming platform will soon be accessible through an iOS iPhone and Android app.

Though available to download now from Apple's App Store and the Android Market, Steam Mobile's full features are currently only available to those who have been chosen to beta test the service.

According to the press release, the app will allow gamers to "chat with Steam friends, browse community groups and user profiles, view screenshots and user-generated content for their favorite games, read the latest gaming news, stay up to date on unbeatable Steam sales, and more".

So, no actual game playing, but more-or-less full access to all the other features on offer from the Steam platform.

"The Steam app comes from many direct requests from our customers," said Gabe Newell, co-founder and president of Valve.

"Seeing which of your friends are online and playing a game, sending quick messages, looking at screenshots for an upcoming game, or catching a sale - these are all features customers have requested. Mobile is changing the way people interact, play games and consume media, and the Steam app is part of our commitment to meet customer demands and expand the service functionality of Steam to make it richer and more accessible for everyone."

To be in with a chance of trying the service early, download the app now, sign in with your Steam account, and wait for Valve to send you a beta invite.

It sounds like a great idea from the Steam team, who have a solid handle on giving their community exactly what they want. Things could get a bit dangerous come the annual Steam Sales and daily deals though; there's no excuse not to splash the cash on some PC gaming goodness now, even if you're out and about away from your computer.

The BBC have updated their BBC News app for Android, adding optimisations that make it easier to use on large screen Android tablets.

Following on from the app's initial launch back in May 2011, this version of the app is for tablets running Android version 3.0 or above. Shifting the UI around slightly to make better use of the extra screen real estate on offer, it works in both landscape and portrait views, working over both wi-Fi and 3G.

In a slightly confusing distinction (but an unavoidable one given the fragmentation of the Android ecosystem), this latest version of the BBC news app is only compatible with Android tablets 7.2 inches in size of bigger. In other words, if despite technically owning a tablet with the 7-inch HTC Flyer or original Galaxy Tab, the Beeb see you better suited to using the scaled up version of their smartphone app instead.

A further update, bringing the BBC News Channel with live video feeds, will land in the near future, while an international BBC Worldwide app is also set for release later this year.

"Growing numbers of people are accessing BBC News on mobiles and tablets," said Kate Milner, mobile product manager for News and Future Media at the BBC.

"In an average week, the BBC News sites and apps are visited by around 9.7 million users worldwide on mobile and tablet devices. That represents about 26 per cent of the total.

"The BBC News product development team will be working on further mobile and tablet improvements over the coming year."

The free, tablet-optimised app is out now on the Android Market. Click here to grab it.

Fancy a bit of Xbox Live gaming on your Android or Apple iOS device? That's the possiblity being speculated upon today after a loose-lipped Microsoft executive teased the expansion of the platform.

Speaking to Forbes, an Xbox spokesperson stated that:

"While the Xbox Live experiences and games always work best on the Windows platform, we understand that some Xbox fans may be using other types of devices. To satisfy that need, we are working to extend a few of our Xbox experiences and titles to other platforms."

When it comes to mobile, only devices packing Microsoft's own Windows Phone OS have access to playable Xbox Live games. While the iOS App Store offers the Xbox Live status, stats and message tracking app My Xbox Live, as well as the standalone Kinectimals app, it doesn't yet offer gaming that's integrated into the same experience you'd find on Microsoft's home console. The same goes for Android devices.

While expansion to other platforms would be great news for consumers, Microsoft will have to weigh any eventual decision up very carefully. On the one hand, moving onto iOS and Android would greatly expand the Redmond company's mobile gaming dominance. But on the other, it will detract from the Xbox Live integration that is a key differentiator on their struggling Windows Phone 7 platform.

Already available on iOS devices for a good while now, the Met Office (the UK's most veritable source of weather information) have now released an app for Android phones too.

The Met Office Weather Application offers up five-day forecasts and severe weather warnings for gales and heavy storms (which would have been very useful during the start of the month's freak winds) and of course weather maps.

There's also a "feels like" temperature reading, which takes into account the wind chill factor, which will make it a bit easier to judge whether or not to pull on your scruffy old cardigan as well as a jacket.

Menus are slick and easy to navigate, clearly displaying all the weathe rinformation, though we did feel the maps themselves were a little cluttered, with cloud, storm and sunshine symbols a bit too prominent.

Click here to pick up the app. It's free.

The team behind CyanogenMod, the popular Android custom ROM, could soon be launching their own application store, which would house apps previously removed from Google's own Android Market store, as well as those specifically suited to rooted phones.

Following on from a suggestion made by Koushik Dutta on his Google+ account, the store would be an added source of income for the CynaogenMod team, whose ROM has now been installed on over a million Android phones.

The CynogenMod team had initially been in talks with Amazon, potentially bundling the Amazon App Store with their ROM in return for a cut of app sales, but Amazon failed to commit.

Great news for fans of emulators and tethering apps, which are always the first to be pulled from Google's own store. However, those reading the news as a new outlet for illegal dodgy apps are sorely mistaken: Dutta has stated the store will only play host to legal apps.

Did you have a Happy Christmas? How about an Appy Christmas? If you picked the latter, you're not alone. According to new research by analytics company Flurry, 1.2 billion apps were downloaded to Apple and Android devices in a Christmas week app-buying frenzy.

The figures, collated between Christmas Day and New Year's Eve, also revealed the week to be one among the highest of device activations too, with an estimated 20 million new devices across both platforms activated.

Looking at the app download figures country by country, the USA claimed the most app downloads with 509 million of the 1.2 billion. China nabbed 99 million apps, with 81 million downloads going to the UK in third place.

It may sound like a massive jump, considering the Apple App Store manages on average just around 1 billion downloads in a whole month, but it's a trend Flurry expect to see rising.

"Looking forward to 2012, Flurry expects breaking the one-billion-download-barrier per week will become more common-place. While iOS and Android growth continues to amaze, the market is still by all measures relatively nascent," said Flurry's Peter Farago in the post.

Click here for more on the world's holiday season download habits.

Top of many a child's Christmas list this year is sure to be a tablet computer or a smartphone device. While your little ones may be looking forward to getting to grips with a handful of gaming apps over the holidays after unwrapping their top tech present, that doesn't necessarily have to be the mind-numbing experience that many parents dread. Mindshapes, a new digital publisher of apps and browser based games (made up in part by the team behind social-gaming juggernaut Playfish) are looking to promote learning through a fusion of gaming and educational principles.

"One of the things that is really important to us is how do you make learning more accessible to a broader range of people? How do you make it more interesting?" Mindshapes CEO David Begg told Tech Digest.

"The delivered learning method isn't always the most effective for the broadest population. We're not trying to challenge the way that schools teach, we're not trying to provide tools for teaching in schools, but we're looking at the ways we can provide accessory products for learning outside of school."

Having secured $5 million of series A investment from its founders and angels, Mindshapes are now preparing to launch two new products, which they describe as "ground-breaking learning worlds."

The first of these is Language City, described as an "immersive, task based, language learning virtual world", which is preparing to launch in closed beta. The next, Magic Town, takes the slightly more familiar shape of an interactive story-book.

"Magic Town as a story-based learning platform has been built with a very deep consideration of the core aspects of learning and development for children in the 2-7 year old age group." said Begg.

"We're not trying to teach cognitive skills, we are trying to teach some of the fundamental underpinnings of learning, that children of that age require. Things like creativity, reasoning, moral understanding, emotional development and social development, involving children in that learning through stories. Our animation content is built on the back of that [...] and the whole of the interactive structure behind those books has been built with the intention of creating the right level of involvement, and driving greater involvement in the story, rather than creating that story as a game."

Though Begg clearly does not want Mindshapes' future as an app publisher be too strictly labelled at this early stage ("I don't want to pigeon-hole us into the space of educational apps," he stresses) a clear effort has been made to maximise the educational potential in each of their products.

"Education isn't an overlay for us, education is deeply embedded in what we are doing from the ground up, and every product we are building comes from a proper understanding of the learning context for that", continued Begg.

"We have an advisory board made up of specialists in education, including Professor Harris from Harvard school of education, one of the leading spokespeople on child development and child psychology, We have within our team people who've previously been teachers, as well as Schoolastic and other educational based bodies. We have deep partnerships with a number of schools that go through pre-school to age 11 and above, as well as specialists in the particular areas that we are working in."

Mindshapes also clearly realise the potential for added engagement that gaming elements bring, with so many youngster these days glued to their games consoles.

"One can gain enormously from playing in a fun, immersive environment that has learning elements to it. Schools are already using a lot of gaming based products, not necessarily in their standard classroom, but certainly in some of the teaching areas beyond the classroom."

That engagement has been greatly increased thanks to the advent of the touchscreen, and larger screen devices like the iPad, believes Begg:

"The touchscreen has had an enormous impact on this category, particularly in the younger children segment, and I think the advent of a lot of products that are evolving, particularly in the younger child segment, would not have been able to have been developed when we were browser based. The touchscreen, and the tablet in particular, is an enormously intuitive device for kids."

Even with the best of intentions, Mindshapes are entering an increasingly crowded area of the app market, with everything from branded children's apps leveraging the likenesses of popular characters to curriculum based apps all vying for the attention of parents and children alike. But Begg remains confident in the Mindshapes vision, and the great potential it holds for the company's young audience:

"We're not trying to be fundamentally revolutionary, but we've learnt a lot from the products that came out previous to ours and a lot of the theory relating to reading content. We're building products that have to stand on their own two feet across multiple platforms, and the responsibility is on us to market those products directly to our customers in the most effective way.

"Mindshapes are really looking to how to apply the interactivity and gameplay that come out of the typical gaming market, and how to incorporate that to make learning more immersive, more fun, more entertaining. We put together a team here that is extra ordinary when it comes to gameplay and interactivity. There is an extra ordinary tech team, and great artists behind that too, and in addition to that we've created a very strong team that have deep educational experience. It's that combination that make us really, really strong."

For more on Mindshapes, click here.

Google have cleaned up the Android Market app store after discovering a number of cloned games contained malicious malware code.

Though seemingly legitmiate "free" versions of premium titles, the downloads had access to a phone's SMS capabilities and would begin sending premium rate text messages to users.

Created by developer Logastrod, the collection of apps were downloaded over 10,000 times.

The list of apps, which have since been removed from the Android Market, is as follows:

Cut the Rope FREE

Talking Larry the Bird

"We have already stated several times that the requirements for becoming an Android developer that can publish apps to the Android market are far too relaxed," explained security specialists Sophos on their blog.

"The cost of becoming a developer and being banned by Google is much lower than the money that can be earned by publishing malicious apps.

"The attacks on Android Market will continue as long as the developer requirements stay too relaxed."

Though Google's open approach to app submissions has its benefits, the search giants have been criticised for not exercising exacting enough quality-control methods, and putting users potentially at risk of security threats.

Have you been affected by a dodgy Android app before? Was the experience enough to turn you away from devices using Google's OS in the future? Let us know in the comments section below.

Instagram, the mega-popular free iPhone app that allows you to add filters and borders to your otherwise stale smartphone snaps, is headed to Android phones.

Speaking at the Le Web conference in Paris, Instagram CEO Kevin Systrom revealed that his team had allocated "two people working on Android" app projects.

Two people may not sound like a lot, but when you consider that the whole Instagram team is only made up of 6 employees, that makes up a third of the company's workforce!

Though likely to remain free, Systrom revealed they are keen to improve the app's monetising strategies.

"Obviously, we didn't start a business to not make money. Our focus now is on growing the network. You really need to build up the network, or no advertisers care," said Systrom.

That network however is looking healthier by the day; 14 million iPhone owners already have the app installed, and that number would rise dramatically were the app to hit the wealth of Android phones available too.

No exact release schedule yet revealed for Instagram's Android version, but we'll be sure to pass on any details as we get them.

Via: CNET

Owners of Sonos wireless home audio kits who also have a Honeycomb Android tablet lying around are in for a treat today. Sonos have updated their controller app for Android to make it fully compatible with Google's latest tablet-orientated OS, making far greater use of the extra screen real-estate allowed by slates.

More detailed, larger album artwork is met with a more roomy playlist UI to make browsing the reams of music content available through the Sonos gear much easier on the eye.

The update comes alongside the Sonos System Software update 3.6, which includes among its many tweaks better Spotify integration (letting you browse the streaming service's inbox and new releases), as well as adding AAC+ codec suport and Danish and Norwegian languages.

Sonos are also introducing a new Sonos Labs programme, opening up their API and letting any music service that wants to become part of their wireless audio platform submit themselves for inclusion. Sonos users will be able to access these additional services in a Beta form.

"Today's feature update reaffirms our commitment to persistently innovate so that Sonos users continue to have the ultimate music experience in every room of the home," said John MacFarlane, founder and CEO, Sonos, Inc.

"Effortless control, endless music and constant innovation are what will keep us as the gold standard for listening out loud in the home."

Both the Android app update and the system software update are free and are available from today.

Tech gifts don't have to be about screen sizes or processing capabilities these days. In fact, they don't have to be physical gifts at all. You can put a smile on a loved one's face just by setting them up with one of the many ace online digital services and subscription packages that are tied into apps, download and streaming sites too.

From music packages like Spotify to productivity programs like Dropbox, there's something here for everyone.

When you're done here, be sure to check out the rest of Tech Digest's 2011 Christmas wishlists too.

Yesterday saw the release of the minecraft pocket edition for IOS devices. Android users have been busy building all sorts of blocky goodness for over a month now, so its the turn of IOS users to see if they can trump those creations.

The pocket edition of the hugely successful game comes with all the main features from the PC version with randomised worlds and the ability to play multiplayer over wireless networks, it is a great edition to anyones game collection on their mobile devices.

The port doesn't have a survival mode but there are plans to update the game with the mode, for now leaving you with creative mode to build in the peace and harmony of your virtual world.

No word if the multiplayer modes will be cross platform, uniting the two platforms for a change in peace negotiations on top a mountain where you have built a castle with the Eiffel Tower inside. Although the likelihood of a cross platform format is highly unlikely.

Last night Google launched their online music store in the US which will allow all devices running the Android operating system to buy, store and stream MP3 files.

Google have launched the service with the backing of some of the industries largest record labels behind them including EMI, Sony Music Entertainment, Universal along with 23 independent labels. The only major label missing from the collection was Warner Music group. Even without some of the big Warner bands such as Led Zeppelin, Linkin Park and Prince it is still launching with a catalog of 13 million songs.

It will be a direct competitor to Apple and Amazon with their respective music stores and streaming services. The new music service will also use a cloud based storage system much like its major competitors, giving users free storage for 20,000 songs. The music store is just the latest in a line of innovations by the search engine giant most recently their social network Google+.

A recent study showed that more than half of all smartphones purchases between July and September ran Android, almost 60 million devices. In the same time period IOS handsets accounted for just 15% of all purchased devices, however you cant read a great deal into this as this was the month before the Iphone 4S was released. But for Google this is the perfect time to launch this feature for their smartphone market.

The new music service will incorporate Google+ by allowing users to share songs with their circles who can listen to the track fully once without having to buy it. Songs will come without DRM copy protect so you can share the file with your friends, promoting the more social music aspect that Google seem to be going for. There will also be a free track to download every day.

New artists wanting to get into the industry can get a helping hand from Google, with it's new Artist Hub. Artists will pay $25 to set up their own page and set their own prices. Google will take a 30% cut from all sales.

"It's not exactly innovative, but the reality is that Google will get success in the same way it has in other markets - by making the most of its strengths in search and Android, and it will keep chipping away," said COlin Gillis, technology analyst at BGC Partners.

There were however no talk of it launched outside of the US as of yet, due to ongoing negotiations between Google and record labels about selling the songs outside of the US. Another feature that sounds like it will be US only will be the ability for T-Mobile customers to charge songs to their monthly phone bill instead of entering their credit card information.

It sounds like the service is offering some good innovations the one thing im most looking forward to is the tracks not being DRM protected so being able to share the tracks with your friends. These seemingly small feature will literally allow your friends to search your library and pick the things they like, almost like a google search made by your friends.

Klipsch, one of the best known headphone and speaker manufacturers, have released a headset exclusively for Android, giving you complete control of your phone from your headphones.

The headset comes complete with controls for music and call control, both from a one button remote. The button controls everything, pausing and skipping music tracks, answer and end calls and even carry out a voice search on your phone.

All the features work for any Android phone on the 2.2 operating system or above, which in this day and age of android is a large percentage. The earphones themselves have patented oval ear tips to fit the natural shape of your ear. With the inclusion of noise cancelling technology, which is almost essential in any set of headphones, blocking out all those annoying noises, like other people, leaving you immersed in the world of your music.

To use many of the features all you have to do is download the free Klipsch Control App to your device and you are set with your all in one control for android devices. Retailing at £89.99, they are not for your average music goer, if you want to be in control these are essential. They are available now in the UK from Klipsch.co.uk

One of Ice Cream Sandwich's major features has been found to have a slight flaw. The face unlock application that requires the user to stand in front of the camera and the phone recognises your face and unlock has been tricked into unlocking with a printed picture.

This is causing a problem but also showing off the feature, all in one go. The video shows the Nexus Galaxy able to recognise the face from a picture on a glossy display, proving the real sensitivity of the camera application which does deserve a round of applause. But, holding your hands for just two seconds, this means that your photo can now unlock your phone, meaning other potential users could quite easily get into your new device.

Obviously there are going to have to be a couple of standards when it comes to using a picture to unlock the phone, in the video the Galaxy Note is used to take the picture. The Note has an 8MP camera, from the looks of things a very good 8MP camera. I doubt that the software would be fooled if it was shown a picture of you in a club with loads of your friends, or a blurry image from a lower spec phone. It would be interesting to see if Google came out with a response to this showing that you need a really good quality picture in order to unlock the device.

However,this update should be a concern for Google on the run up to the big release of the new software and will need to be an area that they will need to look into as a potential security flaw. Perhaps take a leaf out of many films including a secret agency and use both photo and voice recognition? Or go one step further and use finger print and Iris recognition for the ultimate protection for all your text messages and contacts.

Atari, one of the world's leaders of interactive entertainment has announced the release of it's greatest hits app for the android market.

The app has already been available for apple devices for a few months now, but today it will make its debut on all google devices. The App features 100 of the company's all time classic games such as Asteroids and Missile Command.

Missile Command comes as a free incentive with other games starting at around 69p, or you can buy all 100 games at a discounted price so it isn't going to cost you a lot to relive some of the greatest games of arcade history.

Other games include Centipede, Pong, Crystal Castles and Fatal Run. So next time you're on the bus and there are kids blaring out loud tinny music from their MP3 players you can sit back and relax with an app that takes you back to a time when things seemed a lot simplier.