You’re using a password to lock your phone to avoid suspicious apps and emails, right? These are good starting points for you to protect your privacy on your mobile phone. But if for some reason you’re concerned about the rise of phone hacks and massive data leaks, there are other ways to protect yourself.
Here are some dedicated apps to protect your privacy on iOS and Android: ADVERTISING
Private Browsing
One of the easiest ways to improve your privacy is to get a private internet network (VPN), as they allow you to log onto public Wi-Fi without worrying about passwords being stolen. However, whichever VPN you choose, avoid the free ones.
One app for this is ExpressVPN, which offers full features for a good price. In addition to its strong security record, it is consistently among the fastest VPNs on the market and is available for both operating systems.
If you use Android, another option is Tor Brower and its companion, Orbot. The latter not only encrypts your traffic but also all the data of your applications connected to the internet. On iOS, a similar app is Onion Browser, though it only encrypts your browsing.
It is necessary to remember that the use of these two applications can make the loading speed a little slower.
Also, another way to have private browsing is by changing your search engine. The anonymous search engine Duck Duck Go (iOS and Android) is a counterpoint to Google and blocks advertising trackers, forces encryption, and doesn’t direct you around the internet looking for ways to customize ads.
Passwords and Messages
To keep your messages safe, consider using the Signal app (iOS and Android), which offers a good mix of usability and security, as well as encrypting phone and text messages. Bear in mind that for message encryption to work, the other person must also adopt a similar application.
The problem with carrying all these security programs is the constant need to create lots of different passwords. In this regard, something necessary to maintain your privacy on mobile is to install a good password manager.
With iOS 11, Apple introduced its own management feature. However, in the case of Android, an interesting application is 1Password (iOS and Android), which offers 1 GB of storage and two-factor authentication. Its use requires a subscription of US$ 36 (R$ 148.66) per year.
In case of theft
In case you lose your phone or it is stolen, there are several apps that allow you to remotely destroy the contents of your phone. The easiest option for Android is to activate the Find My Device feature –“find your smartphone” – which is already available on the cell phone. It allows you to locate and lock your phone remotely as well as display a message asking for the device to be returned.
Apple has a similar feature, Find My, which allows you to find the brand’s devices, even offline.