Symantec to offer Android-killer tool

Death by text comes to Norton

Symantec is to offer users of Android-based phones software to remotely wipe their devices via text message.

Norton Smartphone Security for Android, a beta due next month, is one of several products the company has announced as part of its Norton Everywhere brand today.

Given that the threat from mobile malware is still pretty small, the company has looked for additional functions to make its Norton suite appear worthwhile on mobiles.

The Android software will let users send a text message that either locks or wipes the data from their devices in the event of loss or theft.

Symantec also announced Norton Connect, another beta, which allows iPhone or Android users to access files they've backed up to the Norton cloud backup service.

The company has also teamed up with managed DNS provider Dyn to provide a free domain-level security service to mobile users.

Customers who configure their devices to use Dyn's DNS servers will be alerted if they try to visit a domain that hosts malicious content.