Avast Mobile Security and Cleanup applications will protect and secure over 85 million existing Aircel Limited customers

Mobile World Congress Americas, San Francisco, September 13, 2017 – Avast, the global leader in digital security products, today announced a strategic partnership with Aircel, one of India’s leading mobile service providers. Under this partnership, 85 million subscribers of Aircel will have access to Avast Mobile Security and Avast Cleanup (a performance optimization application) as part of the Aircel Protect Suite.

According to a recent study conducted by the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI), nearly 77 percent of urban users and 92 percent of rural users in India rely on smartphones as their primary device for internet access. The sheer amount of data shared via mobile devices, along with the increased risk to mobile traffic has spurred Aircel to take the necessary steps to safeguard their customer’s personal information and privacy.

Elaborating on its partnership with Avast, Anupam Vasudev, Chief Marketing Officer, said, “Our customers face a wide variety of mobile threats, which are only increasing. As a responsible digital telecom player, we recognize our customers’ seeded apprehensions and consider mobile device and data protection a key business priority. Our partnership with Avast is the most recent example of our commitment to provide the highest standards of data security solutions to our valued customers and partner network. With the special ‘Aircel Protection Suite’, they can now not only protect their device, but even their most sensitive data.”

In the second quarter, 2017, Avast saw a 40% growth in mobile attacks year-on-year, and based on the current security trends, mobile risks will continue to grow.

“India is a mobile-first market, with the majority of users storing their valuable personal data solely on their smartphones. It has become even more essential to keep these phones protected from cyber-attacks and running at optimal performance. This is Avast’s first mobile carrier partnership in the Indian market, and it will unlock opportunities to expand our mobile security offering to more global carriers with additional features to protect families,” said Gagan Singh, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Avast Mobile.

In the United States, Avast has already partnered with all major carriers to implement safety solutions such as Avast Controls and Insights (CnI) and Avast Locator. Avast CnI helps parents protect their children from cyberbullying by alerting them to critical calls and messages sent to their children’s phone, while Locator helps consumers always know where their loved ones are and find their lost phones. These features are also available to carriers in the Indian market.