PERSONAL DATA SECURITY IN APPLICATIONS USING ANDROID OPERATING SYSTEM

V teoretičnem delu diplomskega dela so opisane mobilne naprave, Android operacijski sistem Android, varnostni mehanizem dovoljenj za dostop do podatkov ter ranljivosti, grožnje (zloraba ranljivosti) in tveganja, zadevajoč osebnih podatkov pri uporabi aplikacij za operacijski sistem Android. Mobilne naprave so veliko nahajališče osebnih podatkov, na trgu aplikacij za mobilne naprave pa narašča število takšnih aplikacij, ki osebne podatke zbirajo, ali pa jih izdajajo tretjim osebam, kar predstavlja za uporabnike varnostna tveganja. Varnostna tveganja so še posebej velika pri operacijskem sistemu Android, saj je najpogosteje uporabljen operacijski sistem med mobilnimi napravami, zaradi česar je tudi najbolj priljubljena tarča zlonamernih aplikacij. Njegov osnovni mehanizem varovanja osebnih podatkov (mehanizem dovoljenj za dostop do podatkov) je zelo ranljiv, saj je osnovan na predpostavki, da so uporabniki operacijskega sistema Android primerno ozaveščeni o tveganjih, grožnjah in izvajanju pravilnih varnostnih odločitev, kar pa se postavlja pod vprašanje. V raziskovalnem delu diplomskega dela se nahaja statistična analiza rezultatov ankete o varnosti osebnih podatkov v aplikacijah operacijskega sistema Android, s katero smo ugotavljali seznanjenost uporabnikov z grožnjami in tveganji zadevajoč varnosti osebnih podatkov, ter zaupanje razvijalcem in lastnikom aplikacij.The theoretical part of this degree paper contains a description of mobile devices, Android operating system (OS), permission based security mechanism, as well as vulnerabilities, threats and risks regarding the security of personal data when using Android OS applications. Mobile devices contain a lot of user’s personal data, which can be collected or leaked by certain malware applications, presenting security risks for users. The number of these kind of applications is rising, especially for Android OS, which is the most frequently used OS among users of mobile devices, making it a primary target for malware applications. Android’s primary security mechanism regarding security of personal user data (permission based mechanism) has proven to be quite vulnerable, as it is built on the assumption that every user has adequate knowledge on threats, risks, and making the proper security decisions, which is questionable. The research part of this degree paper contains a statistical analysis of data gathered by a survey regarding the security of personal data in applications using Android OS. The purpose of this survey was to establish if users are acquainted with vulnerabilities, threats and risks involved in using applications for Android OS, as well as how much they trust developers and marketers of applications to handle their personal data securely