Mobile phones are the most widely used internet device by billions of people across the world. The portability and affordability of mobile phones mean that they have become an important aspect of our daily lives.
However, just like other internet devices like the PC, the rate of losing private data on mobile devices has increased significantly. According to a consumer report, more than 5 million phones were stolen or lost in 2019. The devices are also prone to identity theft and fraud especially when criminals get hold of your sensitive information such as credit card details and social security numbers. Due to all these problems, many people are asking the question; how can someone keep mobile phone data safe?
By the end of this article, you will be able to answer this question comprehensively. Let’s get started!
Use a secure lock screen password
This is a basic security tip that would save you a lot of stress. Some people don’t set screen locks thereby exposing their phones to all sorts of dangers from unauthorized access. Most smartphones have security options that can be used depending on your preference. The best option is if the device has a fingerprint reader, as it is a highly secure means of locking your phone screen.
If the smartphone does not have a fingerprint reader, the next option is to use a password. It is advisable that you use a strong password with a combination of letters, numbers, and symbols for optimal security.
Avoid using personal details such as your names, date of birth or prominent dates for your password. You can also use screen patterns but this is less secure than passwords and fingerprint.
Use browsers that have incognito browsing features
Just like with our computers, it is important that you use browsers that have privacy mode when surfing the web. Popular mobile browsers like Chrome, Opera Mini and UC Browser offer incognito browsing features. One of the advantages of incognito mode is that browsing history gets cleared after you close the window. This means that the browser does not save the information on websites and pages that you accessed when browsing.
However, this will not completely hide your device as your Internet Service Provider will be able to know what you do and what site you visited but this method would prevent snoops from taking a look at your browsing history.
Be careful when using Public Wi-Fi networks
Using public Wi-Fi networks is one of the easiest ways for your information to get stolen. Public Wi-Fi networks have the peculiarity of being, at least generally, quite insecure because they lack encryption. This means that anyone with minimal networking knowledge could see what connected users are doing and even access data on their phones.
In addition, some hackers set up fake Wi-Fi networks with the aim of connecting to unsuspecting phones to steal sensitive data. Thus, we do not recommend connecting to public Wi-Fi networks. We believe it is something that should be limited to cases of extreme urgency.
One way to browse safely with public Wi-Fi networks is to use a virtual private network (VPN). VPNs prevent hackers from accessing your information by using a series of encrypted networks to hide your real IP address.
Always download apps from official stores
The smartphone industry is filled with tons of applications with some of these apps filled with malicious malware. The best way to download secure apps is to use the official stores to acquire applications.
The two major mobile stores, Apple App Store and Google Play Store, regularly undertake security measures to remove malicious software from their platforms. You can also look at the ratings of applications and read reviews to know if it presents a security risk.
You should also monitor the series of permissions that are allowed when installing a mobile app. Some applications ask for permission for services such as GPS location while others could ask for access to the gallery.
Note the permissions allowed and prevent those that are not needed for the application to run.
Keep your device updated always
It is very important that you keep the operating system of your smartphone up to date. Every day new software vulnerabilities are discovered and patches created to repair them. However, some smartphone users neglect these security updates as an inconvenience. It is vital that you update periodically to protect your device from vulnerabilities that can cause problems on our devices.
You can put your phone on auto-update so that it updates as soon as new patches are available.
Back up often
You can choose various media when making a backup for your data. It can be the use of a physical medium such as a DVD (be careful with this option, DVDs degrade over the years) or also in External hard drives. Another option is to make backup copies and upload them to the cloud, in different services, such as Google Drive, etc.
About the Author
William Westerlund is an avid writer & webmaster from Sweden, he run multiple websites and have a big interest in web privacy and how it affects our day to day life.
