Security Flaw Strikes G1 Android Phone - Page 2

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The news also comes on the heels of a sweeping series of updates Apple applied to its own Mac OS X operating system, which is also based on open-source -- and which, like the G1's vulnerability, had flaws that stemmed from older versions of the open source software packages it used.

Miller said the vulnerability in the G1 does not indicate that open source mobile platforms are less secure than closed systems like or Research in Motion's BlackBerry platform.

"Flaws in open source applications is not necessarily a bad reflection," Miller said. "In fact, an open system might make security better overall as there are typically more people involved and reviewing things."

Security in smartphones hasn't been a big issue as no major issues have hit mainstream, another expert said.

"G1 and its openness may indeed have vulnerabilities ... the question is, how is the customer protected?" telecom analyst Jeff Kagan told InternetNews.com.

"Going forward, we may have to install protection on our devices, as the networks will provide protection from their end," Kagan said. "Surprisingly, we have not seen a major issue, but that does not mean we should not be ready. It will occur. The question is, will we be ready?"

Another expert noted that open systems may allow for greater discovery of security glitches.

"Open or proprietary, every OS suffers some security challenges, especially in the first versions," industry analyst Jack Gold, of J.Gold Associates, told InternetNews.com. He also agreed that open source systems include more potential for uncovering flaws early, and added that he believes that in proprietary development, flaws take longer to be exposed.

"I don’t think this makes open source necessarily any more or less secure," he said. "It just means the warts are there for all to see and can’t be easily hidden."

But another industry watcher noted that such security flaws could indicate that open handset systems, at least for now, are not sufficiently secure for enterprise deployment.

"Google and its partners will need to invest additional engineering and marketing resources to build a greater level of trust," Carmi Levy, an analyst at AR Communications, told InternetNews.com.

"You don't build a reputation overnight and the OHA has to expect a bit of a bumpy road before businesses take their new offerings seriously," Levy said.