Mobile Dominance: Smartphone Users Hit 6.7 Billion

Smartphone penetration has reached a new milestone as the global user base surpasses 6.7 billion. This surge in adoption underscores the device’s indispensable role in modern life, transforming communication, commerce, and entertainment on a global scale.

Accroding to GSMA, there are now more than 6.7 billion smartphones in use worldwide, with five per cent growth year-on-year. GSMA said the need for a strengthened mobile application security posture is more evident than ever.

“When consumers purchase a new smartphone, many consider security, privacy and data protection. Overall smartphone security can be considered as a combination of the security of the operating system, the device platform and interfaces, the security of installed software, mobile network security services and the user actions in operating the device,” it stated.

According to Statista, the number of smartphone users in Nigeria, Africa’s largest economy and most populous country, is forecasted to grow to more than 140 million by 2025, amounting to 66 per cent smartphone penetration.

However, GSMA noted that smartphones typically run both pre-installed and
user-loaded applications, saying software application security is therefore an important factor in the overall secure operation of the device.

According to it, smartphones usually contain up to four types of apps, which are pre-installed system permission apps which, cannot be uninstalled by the device user, pre-installed non-system permission apps, which can be uninstalled by the device user, device user apps installed from a controlled source (e.g., the App Store or Google Play) and device user apps ‘sideloaded’ directly to the device.

GSMA revealed that Google evaluated apps on the Google Play Store and estimated that less than one per cent of all downloads from Google Play are potentially harmful applications (PHAs).

It disclosed that one way in which bad actors attempt to circumvent Google Play’s security controls is through versioning. It said versioning occurs when a developer releases an initial version of an app on the Google Play Store that appears legitimate, but later an update is pushed from an attacker-controlled server, changing the code on the user device that enables malicious activity.

Furthermore, Statista noted that as the number of smartphone mobile network subscriptions worldwide reached almost seven billion in 2023, and is forecast to exceed 7.7 billion by 2028, China, India, and the United States are the countries with the highest number of smartphone mobile network subscriptions.

According to Statista, the smartphone market still has high growth potential, with the smartphone penetration rate remaining lower than 70 percent in many highly populated markets, in particular China and India.

“Global smartphone revenue reached 481 billion U.S. dollars in 2021, but was expected to have fallen to 463 billion in 2022. Despite stagnating sales, the increasing average selling price of smartphones is expected to support the market over the coming years.

“The leading smartphone vendors today are Samsung and Apple. These technology companies account for about half of all smartphone shipments worldwide”, Statista noted.