Of all the operating systems currently in the market, Android operating system has a record of being the most purchased and sadly, the most hacked.
Applying this to Nigeria, any smart phone that is not Nokia, Apple or Blackberry, is running an Android Operating System, AOS. Yes, if you are not using any of the listed phone makers that run different operating systems, you are in risk of being hacked.
Fortunately, there are solutions or safety measures as AOS being susceptible to being hacked does not take away its flexibility and ease of use. Another consoling fact is that AOS users need not be tech experts to carry out these safety measures.
Be wary of everything on the internet: This is the very first step. Read mail headings and words and be sure you know and trust the sender before clicking or following links in emails. Roughly 99 percent of emails, even those that the sender’s name and surname are in full, that offer fast money making schemes, are scams that have links that lead you to being hacked. Clicking links in untrustworthy emails can also get your phone infected with a virus that copies all your data and hands it over to hackers.
Registered phone dealers: You also need to ensure that you do not expose your phone to sites and apps which can have a negative influence on your privacy. No matter how trivial some apps seem, always research on how secure they are. Even upon installing or updating apps, read all the things that the app has access to before clicking on allow.
Gather information about hacks: Do well to gather information about hack. You can top cap it by seeking advice from professionals in android mobile phones or registered phone dealers, on steps to take to prevent hacking. They can also guide you on what to do in case your phone gets hacked. Visiting forums is also a good source of information because you can encounter people with similar problems and find out how they deal with them.
Password strength: You know how some email platforms tell you to improve password strength? They have very good reason to, and you should borrow a leave from their book. Ensure you have strong passwords that have letters, numbers and if possible, symbols; for example; tare123@7 or in reverse order. It is of note that using the same password or the same system to generate passwords is not advisable, if you want to be safe from attacks on your phone, your personal details or business data.
Make sure you enable screen lock. When you do this, use all that you have at your disposal in your Android settings, from passwords, patterns, pins, fingerprint to face unlocking, to enhance the safety.
Lock applications: Another thing you can do is to password sensitive applications like emails, mobile banking applications, text messages (particularly for those who do mobile banking), by using Android application, AppLock. This is recommended because screen lock is not a magical protection and it can be bypassed, so it is best to have a second layer of protection.
Avoid WiFi: Hackers can access you while you are using WiFi, particularly public WiFi. Nonetheless, WiFI cannot be completely avoided so the key is not use WiFi for banking transaction. If you must use WiFi try installing some apps for encryption of your outgoing connection and enhancing the security, like WiFi Protector or SecDroid.
After all said and done, don’t let yourself lag behind in technological changes, try to keep up with security improvements that are happening and ensure your smart phone is safe by regularly updating safety protocols.
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Via Vanguard
