With the age of the cellphone, more and more individuals have become extremely dependent on these devices to accomplish a variety of tasks. Whether you are using it to keep track of company receipts or pay bills, there is a good chance that your phone is loaded with all kinds of personal identifying information. Some individuals even use their phones to store their customer’s personal and billing information. Now, just imagine if someone gained access to all that information. Unfortunately, in today’s time, this is a genuine possibility, as hackers are becoming more and more sophisticated. So, how can you safeguard and protect your phone at all times?
Don’t Leave Yourself Vulnerable by Not Updating
If you want to take the first step in the right direction towards total protection, you need to make sure that you are always updating your phone. As soon as the updates are available to download and install them. The same concept can even be applied to computers. Sure, updating is tiresome, tedious, and it changes your interface, but these updates are available for a reason. Most of the time these updates contain patches and fixes that repair vulnerabilities that have already been exploited. So, if you are just skipping those updates, you are leaving yourself vulnerable.
Always Be Cautious of What You Install
With the age of technology, there are more and more apps available than ever before. Sure, some of these apps are necessary and some of them make your life easier, but you really have to be cautious of what you are putting on your phone. When you are installing certain apps, you will notice that they ask for permission to access your camera, files, or even listen to your microphone. Sure, there are a lot of cases in which an app would need access to all these devices, but these are also vulnerabilities. Always research the app and be very cautious when granting permission to these devices. Even if you get an app directly from an app store, this doesn’t always mean that it is 100 percent safe and free of malicious files.
Consider What’s Already on Your Phone
Even if you have several apps installed on your phone and there haven’t been any signs of tampering, it doesn’t mean that frequent updates haven’t turned these apps into something more sinister. You need to really sit down and take a few minutes to look at the apps that are on your phone and see what permissions they are granted. Some hackers will like to sit on your device and gradually steal information bits and bits at a time, so it makes it much harder to detect. Check the privacy settings of the apps to see what permissions you have granted the apps.
Keeping Phone Locked When Not in Use
One of the best ways to keep hackers at bay is to keep your smartphone locked when you are not utilizing it. When you first receive your smartphone, you will be asked if you want to set a password for access. While most people do not want to be bothered with entering the password every time they need to access their phone, others will see it as an opportunity to safe-proof their phone.
Newer versions are integrated with state-of-the-art technology known as facial recognition. This technology can be utilized to access the phone, offering a hands-free and quicker alternative to the traditional password access option. This technology will recognize your facial features and activate the unlocking mechanism. While this technology is only available on newer models, it will definitely help safeguard your phone from hackers.
Tracking Technology
Some models are integrated with tracking technology, which allows users to track the location of their smartphone on an interactive map. While this technology will do nothing to prevent hackers from accessing your data, it will help you locate your phone, in the event it is lost or stolen. If this feature is installed on your phone, you should definitely activate it immediately, because it will prove valuable during a theft.
Keep It with You at All Times
A lot of criminals will attempt to brute force your cellphone. They’ll repeatedly enter passwords, until they’re able to crack your phone and access your private information. You need to prevent this from happening. The best way to do that is by keeping your phone with you at all times. iPhones and your Samsung phone might have measures to prevent this type of intrusion. Nevertheless, it is a good idea to keep your phone with you. Know where it is at all times, so it doesn’t fall into the wrong hands.
Be Cautious of Certain Websites
Some websites are unsafe. If you visit an unsafe website, there is a good chance that your cellphone is going to be infected with some type of virus or dangerous software. With this in mind, you should be very cautious about the websites that you visit. If you’re unfamiliar with a website, it is a good idea to stay away from it. Only visit the websites that you know and trust. This will help prevent your smartphone from being infected with malicious software.
