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Apple wants to give you a new reason for buying the iPhone. The company’s latest ad campaign features a thief who’s able to break in and steal things from “your phone,” but the line gets drawn -- quite literally -- at an iPhone. In the ad, a thief tries to enter an iPhone space but gets rebuffed and quickly gives up.

The iOS versus Android security debate has been playing out for years, but Apple thinks it has enough of an edge now to make it part of the iPhone’s marketing campaign -- a reason for consumers to switch, presumably from an Android device to an iPhone.

We wondered how the iOS/Android security question plays out in the real world and dialed up an expert to find out.

There are several reasons why iPhones are more secure than the various phones running Android software, according to Mike Johnson, who runs the security technologies graduate program at the University of Minnesota.

Johnson has used both Android and iOS devices, but he has an iPhone because of its security edge.

For one, the old rule about PC viruses seems to be holding true with mobile phones, as well. Android phones make up more than 80% of the global smartphone market, and hackers are more likely to succeed if they write programs for these devices, just because of sheer numbers.

“Criminals are going to target the thing that provides them the most return,” Johnson says.

Plus, he says, the process of “patching” security holes is easier on iOS devices. Apple’s iOS operating system only runs on iPhones, while Alphabet’s Android software runs on phones made by numerous manufacturers. It’s more complicated to deliver patches, or bug fixes, that work across so many device makers and carriers. Android can release a patch, but it won’t necessarily be available on all devices right away.

“Fragmentation is the enemy of security,” Johnson says.

There’s a financial way to measure vulnerability, as well. So-called “zero days” are exploits discovered by hackers and security researchers that remain unknown to the software developer. When developers don’t know about them, they can’t issue a patch. That makes the exploits valuable to the intelligence community, and government agencies will sometimes buy those zero days to monitor suspected criminal behavior.

Last year, Wired magazine reported that one security firm was offering up to $1.5 million for the most serious iOS exploits and up to $200,000 for an Android one, a sign that iOS vulnerabilities are rarer.

Every device is at risk, Johnson notes, and there will be malicious apps in the App Store in addition to, say, the Google Play store. But, he says, Apple “has the right and edge to say we are more secure,” because its users are ultimately less vulnerable to hacks.

Whether the security angle will draw in more users remains to be seen. Ordinary users tend to pay attention to other factors -- like cameras and screens -- when they choose new phones. Both of which are likely to get big upgrades in the next iPhone -- and surely their own ad campaign.