Skip to main content

Zscaler ThreatLabz unveils 67% increase in Android malware and evolving IoT threats

Source Decision Insights Record Published November 6, 2025 Companies 1
Human View Machine View

8th article in the last 90 days, one of 17 articles referencing Zscaler. Previous coverage: Weekly Intelligence Brief on SASE and SD-WAN Developments - Week of August 25, 2025 (Aug 2025).

Companies mentioned

Best suited for

Persona
Security Operations Leader
Decision stage
Which to buy
Adoption curve
Early Majority

Our classification, not the publisher's statement. Best suited for, not only for.

The 2025 ThreatLabz Mobile, Internet of Things (IoT), and Operational technology (OT) Threat Report published by Zscaler outlined increased cybersecurity threats, focusing notably on mobile malware and IoT attacks. The report identified 239 malicious applications on the Google Play Store, which were collectively downloaded over 42 million times, targeting users searching for productivity and workflow apps. This reflects a year-over-year increase of 67% in Android malware transactions, as threat actors continue to exploit users' trust in commonly used applications.

Critical infrastructure within the energy sector faced a pronounced threat, experiencing a 387% boost in attacks compared to the previous year. Additionally, India ranked as the dominant target for mobile attacks, accounting for 26% of all activity, while the United States represented the primary target for IoT threats with 54% of the observed attacks. Manufacturing and transportation sectors also saw notable target shifts, with both sectors collectively comprising over 40% of total IoT malware incidents.

Analysis revealed that approximately 40% of blocked transactions related to a single family of malware, Mirai. This was complemented by the discovery of a new malicious backdoor infecting Android devices, as well as an increase in remote access Trojan (RAT) targeting job seekers in high-risk industries. In light of these findings, Zscaler emphasized the necessity of employing a Zero Trust approach combined with AI-driven threat detection to safeguard against these evolving security challenges.

Press release, provided by Globe Newswire on behalf of Zscaler. Read the original.

Mentions

Structured data (JSON-LD)

The schema.org markup this page publishes for search engines and AI agents, exactly as they read it.

[
  {
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@id": "https://decisioninsights.ai/#website",
    "@type": "WebSite",
    "name": "Decision Insights",
    "potentialAction": {
      "@type": "SearchAction",
      "target": {
        "@type": "EntryPoint",
        "urlTemplate": "https://decisioninsights.ai/search/?q={search_term_string}&submit=1"
      }
    },
    "publisher": {
      "@id": "https://decisioninsights.ai/#organization"
    },
    "url": "https://decisioninsights.ai"
  },
  {
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@id": "https://decisioninsights.ai/#organization",
    "@type": "Organization",
    "contactPoint": {
      "@type": "ContactPoint",
      "contactType": "customer support",
      "email": "[email protected]"
    },
    "description": "Decision Insights is a Registry of technology companies, open source projects, and industry terms, built for people and for AI agents that need sourced, structured information.",
    "logo": {
      "@type": "ImageObject",
      "url": "https://wiretap-cdn-assets.nyc3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com/decision-insights/[email protected]"
    },
    "name": "Decision Insights",
    "parentOrganization": {
      "@type": "Organization",
      "name": "Wiretap Labs",
      "sameAs": [
        "https://www.linkedin.com/company/wiretap-labs",
        "https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/wiretap-labs"
      ],
      "url": "https://wiretaplabs.com"
    },
    "publishingPrinciples": "https://decisioninsights.ai/standards/",
    "sameAs": [
      "https://www.linkedin.com/company/decisioninsights"
    ],
    "url": "https://decisioninsights.ai"
  },
  {
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
    "itemListElement": [
      {
        "@type": "ListItem",
        "item": "https://decisioninsights.ai",
        "name": "Decision Insights",
        "position": 1
      },
      {
        "@type": "ListItem",
        "item": "https://decisioninsights.ai/records/",
        "name": "Records",
        "position": 2
      },
      {
        "@type": "ListItem",
        "item": "https://decisioninsights.ai/zscaler-threatlabz-unveils-67-increase-in-android-malware-and-evolving-iot-threats/",
        "name": "Zscaler ThreatLabz unveils 67% increase in Android malware and evolving IoT threats",
        "position": 3
      }
    ]
  },
  {
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@id": "https://decisioninsights.ai/zscaler-threatlabz-unveils-67-increase-in-android-malware-and-evolving-iot-threats/#blogposting",
    "@type": "NewsArticle",
    "about": {
      "@id": "https://decisioninsights.ai/registry/zscaler/#organization",
      "@type": "Organization",
      "mainEntityOfPage": "https://decisioninsights.ai/registry/zscaler/",
      "name": "Zscaler"
    },
    "articleSection": [
      "Cybersecurity",
      "Network Operator"
    ],
    "audience": [
      {
        "@type": "Audience",
        "additionalType": "Persona",
        "audienceType": "Security Operations Leader"
      },
      {
        "@type": "Audience",
        "additionalType": "Adoption curve",
        "audienceType": "Early Majority"
      }
    ],
    "author": {
      "@id": "https://decisioninsights.ai/author/decision-insights-signals/#person",
      "@type": "Person",
      "name": "Decision Insights Record",
      "url": "https://decisioninsights.ai/author/decision-insights-signals/"
    },
    "dateModified": "2026-08-23T19:30:44-06:00",
    "datePublished": "2025-11-06T04:39:35-07:00",
    "description": "The 2025 Zscaler ThreatLabz report highlights a 67% increase in Android malware and escalating IoT threats targeting key industries.",
    "headline": "Zscaler ThreatLabz unveils 67% increase in Android malware and evolving IoT threats",
    "isBasedOn": {
      "@type": "CreativeWork",
      "sourceOrganization": {
        "@type": "Organization",
        "name": "GlobeNewswire"
      },
      "url": "https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2025/11/05/3181114/0/en/Zscaler-ThreatLabz-Reveals-67-Jump-in-Android-Malware-and-40-of-IoT-Attacks-Target-Critical-Industries-and-Hybrid-Work.html"
    },
    "keywords": [
      "Internet of Things",
      "Malware",
      "Operational technology",
      "Threats"
    ],
    "mainEntityOfPage": {
      "@id": "https://decisioninsights.ai/zscaler-threatlabz-unveils-67-increase-in-android-malware-and-evolving-iot-threats/",
      "@type": "WebPage",
      "sdDatePublished": "2026-08-24",
      "sdPublisher": {
        "@id": "https://decisioninsights.ai/#organization"
      }
    },
    "mentions": [
      {
        "@id": "https://decisioninsights.ai/registry/zscaler/#organization",
        "@type": "Organization",
        "mainEntityOfPage": "https://decisioninsights.ai/registry/zscaler/",
        "name": "Zscaler"
      }
    ],
    "publisher": {
      "@id": "https://decisioninsights.ai/#organization"
    }
  },
  {
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@id": "https://decisioninsights.ai/author/decision-insights-signals/#person",
    "@type": "Person",
    "description": "Press releases and independent analyst research, structured into concise summaries for research and monitoring. Produced under our Standards & Methodology.",
    "name": "Decision Insights Record",
    "sameAs": [
      "https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/decisioninsights/"
    ],
    "url": "https://decisioninsights.ai/author/decision-insights-signals/"
  }
]

Is this your company? Get structured data for your own pages