Mobile phone security: What are the risks?

Editor's note: Amy Gahran writes about mobile tech for CNN.com.

Fortunately, protecting yourself against mobile security risks doesn't require getting paranoid about your phone. At a recent mobile security conference in San Francisco, staffers from digital security provider Norton outlined some common current mobile threats:
Malware
While no smartphone platform is immune from malware, so far Android apps appear to present the greatest malware risk. Mobile security tools such as Lookout or Norton Mobile Security (in beta) can help guard against Android malware by scanning apps and other programs and data on your phone.
It helps to understand what each of the available Android permissions mean and to check the apps already on your phone to spot excessive permission requests. TechPP published a good overview of Android permissions.
Also, the security measures of closed-app ecosystems such as Apple's App Store or BlackBerry AppWorld are not perfect. So stay alert for odd behavior from any kind of phone or app.
Premium SMS billing
This kind of mistake can happen on any type of phone, even simple feature phones. But smartphone users face an extra risk because malware can cause your phone to surreptitiously send texts to premium SMS services. Cell phone carriers allow subscribers to block premium SMS messaging. E-mail and SMS phishing
Here, the best mobile safety tool is skepticism. Mobile security provider Lookout recently debuted its safe browsing service aimed at alerting mobile users when they're about to access a likely or known phishing site. (So far this works only with the stock Android web browser.)
Spyware
To make it work, the snooper obtains the target's phone, installs the spyware app, activates it and returns the phone.
Malicious websites
Like apps, websites can be contaminated with malicious code that exploits browser vulnerabilities.

(Ars Technica) -- After offering an unlocked version of the iPhone overseas for some time, Apple has finally begun selling an unlocked version of the GSM iPhone 4 in the U.S.
The unlocked 16GB iPhone 4 is now available directly from Apple for $649, with the 32GB model going for $749. (Bet you're hankerin' for those subsidized phones again!)