Viruses & Malware

Are you seeing suspicious ads or pop-ups or are you concerned you have a virus or malware on your device? AT&T is not the source of—and cannot control—malware, but we can give you a few tips to troubleshoot and protect against malware in the future.

If you’re experiencing ads or pop-ups in your mobile browser, visit Ads, Pop-ups & Notifications for tips.

Interested in proactive detection and malware and virus protection for your Android and iOS phone? AT&T Mobile Security helps protect your phone from malware, viruses, and system threats. Learn more.

Troubleshoot if you suspect malware on your device

The source of unwanted behaviors is often an app that the user downloaded to the device. Safe Mode can help you confirm the problem is with a third-party app, or you can uninstall recently installed apps if you suspect one of them is the problem. If all else fails, you can perform a factory reset on your device after backing up your data.

Remove recently installed apps

Uninstall the apps that were downloaded or updated since the problem began. Uninstall them one at a time and begin with the ones that were installed most recently.

Learn how to manage and remove apps in the App Troubleshooting tutorial.

Perform a factory reset

If you're still seeing the problematic behavior, you can reset your device, but make sure to back up all your important data first.

Tips to avoid malware in the future

1. Here are a few things you can check first:

2. Ensure that your phone does not accept apps from "unknown sources." Some apps have the ability to download and install other apps to your phone, but that doesn't mean it’s a good idea to accept them. To prevent this from happening, go to Settings > Security > Install unknown apps. If any of the apps in this list are "allowed," then they could be installing harmful apps on your device. Select the app and uncheck Allow from this source.

3. Keep your mobile operating system up to date.

Get more tips from our community on how to keep your device safe.