Smartphone browsers failing to identify phishing websites

Researchers at Berkeley University in California said users of mobile devices have little chance of identifying phishing sites.

They said that unlike PCs, where browsers give plenty of warning of dodgy websites, with warning lights and other features, the screens on smartphones are too small to display this protection.

This makes it nearly impossible for the mobile user to tell a fake site from a genuine one; making it easier for criminals to develop malicious programs and apps that could direct users to a phishing site or record their passwords.

Paypal security researcher Dr Markus Jakobsson believes this could become a huge problem over the next few years and is developing software called spoofkiller that would work on smartphones.