With so many ruthless phone security breaches taking the world by storm, every smartphone user is becoming more and more conscious of ways to protect their personal data. Each day close to 200,000 devices are lost, stolen or even damaged.
Imagine if you are fall prey to such a situation; not only would you lose your prized possession, but also end up losing data, which in the wrong hands, can damage your reputation as well as lead to identity theft. So what does one do, in such situations?
Let’s quickly take a look into some options available to smart phone users, so that their personal information is not lost or misused.
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Keep upgrading the software of your phone
Phone manufacturers keep coming up with the latest OS updates, in order to ensure all security loopholes are plugged in. If you keep updating your phone regularly, it will help keep things up to date, so that all possible loopholes are taken care of.
The most simple and effective way to block someone’s unauthorized use of your phone is to put a password/pin on your phone. These days, since all the data is stored on the Cloud, such passwords help block the phone from being misused. After a few attempts of entering the wrong pin, the phone locks itself, and gets formatted, so that no one can ever lay their hands on what’s not rightfully theirs.
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Use antivirus and mobile security software
With cyber-crimes taking a toll on people, everyone needs to be super cautious with respect to keeping themselves safe in the cyber world. Since many of us actually use the Internet on our phones, chances are you might end up downloading files or software which can lead to a breach of security. In such cases, installing software from reputable companies like Bitdefender Antivirus can really save you from being the potential victim of a cyber-crime. Bitdefender Mobile Security is an excellent option as it is low on your phone’s resources and costs very little.
There are a lot of apps available in the iOS store or the Play Store. But that does not mean you download apps, which you are not familiar with. Chances are, many of the apps tap into your phone’s personal memory space, and might transmit data to the owners of the apps, which can prove to be a wrong move on your part eventually.
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Turn off Bluetooth and WiFi when not in use
Accept connections only from sources you trust. If you connect to unknown Bluetooth or WiFi sources, you might be inviting trouble for yourself. Keep things to a minimum, especially when you’re outside. These things might seem cool initially, but they can really get messy, if left unmanaged.
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Backup your data
Many a times, your antivirus software packages give you an excellent option to back up your data on their Cloud. There are some smart phones which come pre-equipped with their own Cloud services as well. Whatever be the case, always remember to back up your data at regular intervals, so as to make sure you have a ready source to access your data, whenever needed.
In order to enhance their convenience, a lot of people usually end up storing their bank account numbers, ATM passwords etc. right on their phones. What does this translate into eventually? A security threat! What if you lose your phone in the train, while coming back from work? To top it all, you don’t have a pin or a password on the phone as well. Whoever has stolen your phone, can conveniently access all your bank account details and extract money, without having to bother too much about your personal rights.
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Invest in a bundled security suite
Ideally, the best approach is to invest in a bundled security suite, which provides round the clock protection online and offline. This would help put your mind at peace, since you don’t have to keep installing different software from different companies, for meeting different security purposes.
These were some of the tips and tricks which can really help you in the fight against cyber-crime and data loss. These tips are not only simple and easy to follow, but they are also effective and if implemented properly, they can go a long way in helping you protect your smart phone.
