After shopping around and saving your hard-earned money, you finally treated yourself to a nice smartphone. To keep your smartphone as safe as possible, you might spring for a nice case, invest in insurance and keep it close to you at all times.
While these are all good precautions to take, you should consider going one step further by boosting your phone’s security. Cyber attacks are targeting smartphones more frequently, and issues like malware and viruses are now popping up on mobile devices, reports Information Security Buzz. Thankfully, there are several apps and security solutions that can keep your smartphone safe from these threats. Consider the following:
Password Protect Your New Phone
Although most smartphones are set up with a password option, some people might feel it’s too much of a hassle to type in a password every time they want to use their phone. However, using a strong password is one of the best ways to protect your new phone’s security. This way if you are checking your bank balance on your phone and then set it down, not just anyone can have instant access to all of your personal information.
Still not convinced this is an issue? Security software-maker Symantic conducted tests on 50 smartphones that were purposely lost in five major cities to track what people who found the smartphones would do with them. Their report shows that 96 percent of the people who found the smartphones looked up personal information on them. This included 72 percent looking through photos, 57 percent looking through saved passwords and 43 percent looking through online banking apps.
Get Avast Mobile Security & Antivirus
The Avast Mobile Security & Antivirus app offers Android users an impressive list of tools to keep the mobile device safe and secure. It includes antivirus protection and scans your downloaded apps and URLs you are browsing for possible malware issues. In addition, the app removes any viruses it finds. As a bonus, this app can locate your phone with a web-based phone locator feature, which is great if you travel a lot or misplace it frequently. Plus, the app lets you lock your phone and wipe the memory remotely. These are necessary steps if you lose your phone or accidentally leave it somewhere so your identity or important information isn’t stolen.
Boost Your Financial Security
Once you have your new smartphone set up with antivirus apps and other security features, you can then work on arming your phone with apps that will keep other parts of your life more secure. For example, set up financial alerts on your phone through a trusted company like LifeLock so that if someone gets access to your credit card or bank account numbers, you’ll be notified quickly about the situation, right on your smartphone. Or, if you have a home security system, you can manage it through an app like Alarm.com. This app connects home security devices into one easy-to-use program and includes a remote control feature.
