According to a new study conducted by Israeli cyber-security start-up Checkmarx, sixty percent of all smartphone apps, have "high" or "critical" security problems in several of seven security protocols studied. Overall, four out of every ten apps have some major flaw that could allow a hacker to get control of a device's data, or the device itself.

The Israeli report specifically added that "iPhone owners needn't be smug about the results, the study showed. While iOS users believe that they are safer because of Apple's 'walled garden' approach to apps, where an Apple team supposedly vets every piece of software offered in the App Store for, among other things, cyber-safety, App Store apps are no safer than those designed for Android systems.

In fact, apps written for the free-wheeling, anything-goes Android development environment, where any app can be loaded on to a device without being checked by a committee, are somewhat less security challenged than iOS apps. According to Checkmarx, "40% of the detected vulnerabilities on iOS tested applications were found to be critical or high severity," while 38% of Android apps had the same problem.

If you wish to review the full study findings, click here. If you happen to be an iOS developer, then you should check out a new report by Checkmarx posted this week titled "40 Tips You Must Know about Secure iOS App Development."

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