Oopsie. Apparently a few Toshiba TG01s (those are the Snapdragon-powered, massive-screened phones we've been gushing over a bit) sold in July shipped with a virus. And, no, we're not talking about the funky user interface. Inside-handy.de [via unwired view]

Through the virus caused damage at O2 have not been reported. Toshiba is currently assessing the impact and the cause. We want as quickly as possible to clarify to what a virus is involved and how the virus on the memory cards could reach. From the beginning of next week, the TG01 again be distributed.

No word, though, on what sort of trouble the virus caused, and this appears confined to O2, so no need to run out and buy virus protection for your phone, especially since the TG01 isn't even available in the United States. And for more on smartphones and viruses, check out our previous story.

If you've followed WMExperts for awhile, you've probably noticed that we've glanced askance at anti-virus or other malware solutions for Windows Mobile.  The bottom line is that the threat doesn't seem big enough to warrant the performance hit that you'd get by running anti-virus on your smartphone.  In fact, so far as we know, there aren't any serious viruses or other threats out there at all right now.  Nobody here runs anti-virus and nobody here recommends that you do either.

Of course, making such a blanket statement isn't so cut-and-dried -- it's always possible that something nasty could crop up and it's legitimate to be worried about it.  We just received an email from David in this vein.  Find it and our answer, after the break!

(Have a question for WMExperts?  We've added a new "Ask WMExperts" category to our contact form - that's the place to do it!)

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One question we hear a lot from new WM users is do they need an anti-virus program for their device?

Norton, Kaspersky, Spybot, Airscanner and Bit Defender all have WM versions available already--so it's not surprising to find someone wondering if they need it.

The general answer we give is for now: no--you don't need this software. Using it will merely slow down your device, is added cost and premature.

Just last week though, the BBC ran a story--the yearly "mobile viruses are coming!" one. Since 2003, when PPCs started to really take off, we've been constantly hearing & preparing for the big day these viruses take off. Surely that day will happen, but so far it has not and there have not been any popular or pervasive attacks. Plus, with the fractionation of mobile OSs, there is no prime target (though Symbian is up there).

Still, the best protection is always knowledge. Be careful of where you get your files from (trusted software distributors only), don't run files from unknown email and keep up with mobile technology news ;-)

Read: "Handsets to become crime targets"

This is the first “in the wild” Windows Mobile malware I can remember off the top of my head. It was discovered in China and written up over at McAfee. Basically if you downloaded a games pack (including Google Maps in that pack) from a certain Chinese website it installed a piece of software that did the following:

• Silently makes your smartphone accept unsigned applications
• Installs a hidden, difficult to remove program that sends your personal information back to home base
• Installs a copy of the malware on your memory card for further spreading.

The site has since been shut down (despite protests from the developer that he didn't mean to do anything evil). It's a bummer, though, I am not keen on installing anti-virus on my smartphone.

The InfoJack Trojan spreads by either tricking mobile users into installing seemingly legitimate application installation files or if punters inadvertently use an infected memory card on vulnerable devices. The malware has been spotted circulating in China. - Register

Anybody running anti-virus / anti-spyware on their smartphones? How's your performance?

Here we go again, McAfee has released a white paper (PDF link) telling the world that, yes Virginia, you can write malware for Windows Mobile. This seems to happen every few months when this anti-virus company or that doesn't feel it's getting enough attention. Of particular note to McAfee researchers is Windows Mobile's SMS API (which enables cool software like Mobile Secretary's SMS auto-reply and forward), which they say could allow ne'er do wells to grab your personal info via text.

Anyhow, before you run for the hills, note that an exploit hasn't been released.

While mobile malware attacks have been scarce thus far, and some experts -- including F-Secure wireless security guru Mikko Hypponen -- have predicted that such threats will likely never rival widespread nature of today's desktop viruses, McAfee maintains that as smartphones takeoff more exploit code will be written to target the machines.

Read: InfoWorld