Vodafone 'has sold' 3,000 infected HTC Magic smartphones

2010-03-22

Vodafone has now distributed about 3,000 HTC Magic smartphones infected with malware in Spain, it emerged today (March 22nd).

Panda Security first uncovered the problem earlier this month when it plugged the popular Android-based handset into a PC and it prompted an anti-virus alert.

The phones' 8GB memory cards were found to contain malware linked to the Mariposa botnet, plus a Conficker worm and password-stealing software designed to target Lineage Games.

Vodafone originally suggested that the Panda findings were an isolated incident, but with another case being reported last week, it has now admitted that up to 3,000 phones could be infected.

Although it maintains that the problem appears to be restricted to Spain, the company has vowed to issue free security software to anyone whose PC becomes infected by the malware.

Vodafone is the second-largest telecommunications provider in Spain with 14 million customers and its network went live in 2000 after the purchase of Airtel.

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