Long gone are the days when the only people who had to worry about data breaches were the digital security staff for major government agencies, banks, and medical establishments that collect tons of private medical data. Data has surpassed oil as the world’s most valuable commodity, and there seems to be no end in sight to the intense growth that data has had.
With that in mind, the following will explore a few critical things you can do to help prevent data breaches. The focus will be on smartphone data breaches in particular, although many of these tips can also apply to your other devices.
If You Think You’ve Already Had A Breach
If you’re doing this research because you think your phone might already have been breached, there are a few things you could do before employing the remainder of the information provided. If your phone is being tracked, you need to either get rid of existing tracking before you start preventing more trackers from getting access to your personal data. You might want to complete a backup of your phone’s data and then do a factory reset.
A factor reset is a process that completely wipes your phone, presenting you with a fresh and clean device that basically seems like it’s just come from the factory. This usually gets rid of tracking. Of course, you still need to prevent future tracking with appropriate protective measures, and you want to be really careful when taking your backup and applying it to your phone again. Some forms of a data breach, like viruses, can get back onto your phone via data.
Grant Only Necessary Permissions
One of the easiest ways to protect yourself is to be careful about what permissions you give applications on your phone. You’ve probably seen messages in the past that pop-up and ask you if a particular app can access your photo library or your location. Every time something like this arises, ask yourself if it’s necessary. Don’t grant any permissions you don’t need to, and think carefully about the ones you feel you need to grant.
Do a little research if you’re feeling unsure. It’s also useful to remember that you always have the option of granting permission, completing the required task, and then going back and taking away the permission once you’re done.
Be Careful When Installing Apps
Not all apps have your security in mind. In fact, almost none of them do. The average app is looking to grow its user base and make money. Apps that are free often earn their money by selling your data to the highest bidder. And don’t think that just because you haven’t directly shared information with an app that it doesn’t know things about you. Apps commonly are aware of where your work, where you live, who you hang out with, where you travel, what you send in your messages, what products you look for and buy, how much time you spend on your phone, and what things you search for online.
Some of the least trustworthy apps include Facebook and Facebook Messenger, local weather apps, and mobile multiplayer games that involve you playing game switch your friend like Words with Friends. If you’re unsure about a particular app, it’s always a good idea to research it before installing it. You also want to be incredibly careful that you’re downloading the official version of a given app rather than a fake copy of the app that’s designed to steal your information. This can happen occasionally.
Get A VPN
A VPN is a wonderful tool that can help keep you and your data safe. A VPN or virtual private network makes it harder for people or organizations to spy on your devices and intervene in your devices. It works by disguising the address of your device, which results in websites and applications thinking you are located somewhere you’re not actually located. VPNs also encrypt all your data, meaning if someone does manage to get ahold of your data, they won’t be able to read or use any of it.
Many VPN providers give you packages that cover multiple devices, so you can often use one account to protect your personal computer as well as your phone and your spouse’s phone. There are also family-sized plans for those who have teens with their own smartphones as well.
As a bonus, VPNs allow you to change your location to anywhere in the world, which can give you access to nation-specific content. Sometimes YouTube videos or video streaming services like Netflix and Hulu have deals for certain content being available only in certain places. Maybe your favorite show is available on Netflix in Sweden but not in your home country. You can simply use your VPN to switch your location to Sweden and see the content.
Turn Off Location Tracking
One of the most valuable pieces of data on your phone is your location history. It might scare you to realize that most phones and Google Accounts associated with phones track your every movement and save this information. If you look for it, you can find a map that shares everywhere you’ve gone since you got your phone.
On Android devices, you can usually turn off this setting by going into Settings, then Location, then Google Location Settings, and then Location history. From there, you can turn off tracking. You can also delete the previously saved information regarding your locations at specific dates and times.
On Apple devices, you’ll usually be able to alter location tracking by going to Settings, then Privacy, then Location Services, then System Services, then Significant Locations. You’ll be able to turn off tracking from there and clear your history.
The above information should have given you a few tips and tricks for keeping your phone data safe. It’s important to note that hackers and cybercriminals are constantly improving, and this means you need to regularly check up on how to keep your data safe. There will likely be new tips and tricks you can employ every few months.
It’s also important to research all phone updates you’re asked to complete. Phone updates are often part of protecting yourself as they tend to patch data security holes that are discovered over time. They also tend to change up your settings, meaning you’ll probably have to turn off location tracking again and reset some of your permissions to more comfortable settings after they’re done.
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