The threat to smartphones running on the Android operating system continued to grow, with the vendor reporting that malware targeted at the operating system had risen 76 per cent in the last three months compared to Q1. In the first quarter, McAfee found Android malware made up only 15 per cent of smartphone viruses while 75 per cent of malware targeted Symbian.

"We are also starting to see SMS messages that contain malware, and viruses that drop malware which causes the smartphone to constantly ring, this creates a very expensive phone bill," she said. Kelly added that some of the telecommunications companies that it works with, such as Vodafone Australia, had reported this back to McAfee.

The survey also found that 27 per cent of respondents owned at least five digital devices per household, with 64 per cent owing three, while 42 per cent of the Australian consumers spent more than 20 hours a week using devices for personal use.

Got a security tip-off? Contact Hamish Barwick at hamish_barwick at idg.com.au

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