Our smartphones keep us on schedule, remind us of our next doctor’s appointment, and give us gift ideas for our friends’ upcoming anniversary. They also connect us to bank accounts, government institutions, email accounts – and are a portal to all of our most private information. Carrying all this personal data in our purses and pockets is convenient, but also creates some serious vulnerability.
While most of us have gotten adept at keeping our laptops secured with anti-virus software, our phones remain largely unprotected. For those who access company and business data on their personal smartphones, the risk level is even higher.
Over the last several years, cyber criminals have increasingly targeted these information-rich devices, as they make for easy targets. So how can you fight back? Here are a few simple steps.
Keep the Operating System Updated
Periodically you will receive an alert telling you there is an update to your phone’s operating system. Follow the prompts and install the update, as the manufacturer will include security patches and updates based upon recent threats. You can check for the latest security update in your phone’s settings at any time.
Clean Up & Update Your Apps
Hackers and invaders often manage to come in through old versions of applications, and applications left open and running in the background are also a vulnerability. You can easily take care of these issues.
- First, uninstall all unwanted applications on your phone.
- Next, update your remaining Android or iPhone apps, as most updates include security fixes.
- Finally, be sure to completely log out of apps when you are done using them – every time.
Keep it Locked Up Tight
You wouldn’t leave your front door open and unlocked, and you don’t want to leave your phone wide open either. Set your auto-lock function to a short time frame – for instance, to lock your phone after 1 minute of inactivity – and decide upon a strong password.
Each app which contains secure information should also be protected with a strong password.
Tip: If your phone allows for a 6 digit password versus a 4 digit password, opt for the longer one.
Use Precaution with Public WiFi
Using public wifi to check the weather or catch up on the news is generally okay, but using a public network for anything personal can set you up to be a victim. If you want to check your bank balance on the go, or make a quick purchase with your credit card, it is best to switch your phone over to your data plan.
As more plans move to unlimited data, the need to use public wifi is becoming less frequent; just make sure that your wifi is turned off when you leave your house, or your phone may automatically join the public network.
A further security step may be installing VPN software on your phone.
A Virtual Private Network (VPN) allows users to safely connect to a private network, as well as share data remotely through public networks. A VPN provides an authenticated, encrypted tunnel for securely passing data traffic over public networks while masking your identity. Learn more about VPNs and top expert picks.
Mind Your Texts Messages
There is always something new, and with smartphones it is called “smishing”. Hackers send text messages to unsuspecting users- if you click on a link or respond to the message, they can download malware which will steal your private data.
If you receive a message from someone you don’t know, even if they seem like they know you, ignore and delete. As Android phones seem especially susceptible to this scheme, anti-virus is a must have.
Even though you may not have ever given it much thought, your phone warrants as much security as your computers and tablets. As is the case with all devices, taking a few precautions now can go a long way to protecting you later.
If you own a business and your employees access company data on their smartphones, contact us today to learn more about how to best protect your business and assets.
