The number of devices running with the Android operating system has been on the rise. By the end of 2012, it will account for nearly half of the world's smartphone market. Along with its growth, the importance of security has also risen. A proportional increase in the number of vulnerabilities is also happening to the extent that there are a limited number of security applications available to protect these devices. The efficacies of these applications have not been empirically established. This paper analyzes some of the security tools written for the Android platform to gauge their effectiveness at mitigating spyware and malware.

One person's "paranoia" is another person's "engineering redundancy".

- Marcus J. Ranum

The superior man, when resting in safety, does not forget that danger may come. When in state of security he does not forget disorder may come. Thus his person is not endangered and his states and all their clans are preserved.

- Confucius (551-479 BC)

Securing a computer system has traditionally been a battel of wits: the penetrator tries to find the holes, and the designer tries to close them.

- Gosser