Barclays is offering its mobile banking customers free security software from anti-virus vendor Kaspersky to protect them from malicious programs and SMS spam.
The bank says it is the first in the UK to offer mobile customers free protection, which can be downloaded from its mobile site.
The software provides anti-virus scanning of all incoming files and connections along with on-demand scans of the phone's internal memory and extension cards. It also protects against SMS message spam by defining filters.
In addition, if the phone is lost or stolen it can be blocked remotely and the data deleted.
The mobile site has also been revamped to make it easier to view account balances and statements, make transfer between accounts and make payments outside of the bank.
Sean Gilchrist, director, electronic banking, Barclays, says: "Barclays has offered customers one of the best security packages of all online banks over the last two years and it's important that customers protect their mobile phones in the same way they do their computers from all threats, by downloading this new software."
Barclays began offering Kaspersky security software to its two million online customers last year.