ZDNET's Ed Burnette on the Android data leak scare →
The story is getting a lot of attention because it was noticed on Android, but it’s not, in fact, an Android vulnerability. It’s a security bug in any program that does not encrypt its authorization tokens.
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Should you be worried? Until a patch is available (either through the Market or an Android update) the problem can be avoided by not using the affected applications in a vulnerable situation. What’s a vulnerable situation? Based on the information we have so far, IF you sync your calendar or contacts while using the open WiFi of the local StarBucks or airport, and IF somebody within 50 feet or so of you is waiting for you to do that and is running a packet sniffer, and IF you think they might do harm by looking at your doctor’s appointments and boyfriend’s phone number, THEN you might want to take precautions such as turning off WiFi until you get back home to your secure network. Otherwise, in my opinion it’s not worth getting too worked up about.
