An Unwilling Switch From Android To iOS

I've been writing for HardwareZone for a while.

I continued freelancing whenever I could, after moving on from my role to another career path back in the noughties. Those who know me and are reading this will say that I've been among the most ardent defenders of Android since I first laid hands on the HTC G1 Dream in 2008. While that early HWZ team was evenly divided between iOS and Android loyalists, I endured a lot of good-natured ribbing as one of Android's loudest supporters. I would jump in to defend Google's mobile OS at the slightest hint of debate.

Malware: Never Say Never

When I made my first public appearance with an iPhone 15 Pro Max earlier this month, there were exclamations of surprise and satisfaction from friends and family alike:

"You aren't the real Count! What have they done to him!"

"Finally, you've come to your senses! Better late than never..."

Whether I had "come to my senses" is up for debate, but I knew for certain: I no longer felt safe using Android phones after losing hundreds of dollars in online transactions I did not know of, or approved of.

As you've probably heard by now, there has been an exponentially growing number of scammers exploiting Android's openness to third-party apps and accessibility permissions, which, at the highest levels, even allow a phone to be controlled remotely to perform fraudulent acts of all kinds.

In Singapore's 2023, this really took off in a big way, with affected Android users losing over $334.5 million in the first half of this year alone. For my part, I once malicious inroads.

Having reviewed phones for decades also meant that I should have known what I was up against, but losing money without my knowledge has given me a new lens on how little I understand the complexity of malware regardless of a person's technological proficiency or interest.

What Actually Happened