Last year, Android discovered 574 vulnerabilities. That’s much less than in 2020 when the number reached 859, but it’s still a cause for worry. No one wants to be a victim of cybercrime. If you aren’t cautious, you are putting your digital life at risk. This includes your data, apps, personal contacts, bank details, and other sensitive information. Thankfully, you can resolve many risks with a bit of caution on your behalf. In this article, you’ll learn about the 8 best ways to hack-proof your Android device.
1. Connect to Secure Networks Only
We all love the occasional free wifi hotspot. However, free networks come with high risks and can be a way for hackers to access your data. For example, if a network is unencrypted, hackers can intercept your connection and steal all of the data that you transmit. Knowing this, you should try and avoid public networks as much as possible. If you have to use them, encrypt the connection with a VPN to minimize the chances of being hacked.
2. Use Android’s Built-In Security Features
Android has its own set of security features that can protect you from unwanted malicious events and hacks. You can lock your phone with a password, fingerprint, or your face. Additionally, there are encryption configurations for various programs and apps. This is all very easy to set up. You can use the “Encrypt phone” option found under Security & Lock Screen in Settings.
3. Store Your Important Data on the Cloud
Even if you encrypt everything and set strong passwords for all of your apps, the risk of having your phone stolen or losing it still exists. You wouldn’t want to lose all that important data with it, would you? Phones are replaceable, but a lot of the data we have on them isn’t. Consider investing in an Android cloud solution where you’ll have a backup of your images and important files, accessible at any time.
4. Use Strong and Diverse Passwords
This sounds like an obvious solution, yet most of us still use weak passwords. To make them easier to remember, we use the same password for just about every account from our social media to our email to our bank account. If you do this, just imagine the access you’re giving to a person that figures out your one and only password! Always create strong passwords, which are harder to hack. (“123456” has been used as a password by over 103 million people, and it takes less than a second to hack.)
5. Be Wary of Where You Download Your Apps From
Downloading apps from the Google Play Store is one of the safest options because you’re less likely to download a potentially harmful app. Still, many apps aren’t downloadable directly from the Play Store. Some need to be downloaded from a website, which increases the risk. There are plenty of websites that allow users to download apps “for free”, but all that users end up getting is a packet of malware. Please only download apps from known, safe platforms.
6. Update your System Regularly
As we mentioned, Android is constantly working on making the user experience more secure. They do this with updates which, if you don’t download, won’t be able to keep you safe. Even so, around 40% of Android users today use an older version of the software. This puts over a billion Android devices at risk, which can be solved simply by tapping on “download updates”.
7. Update Your Apps, Too
In addition to updating your system, you should also update your apps. App creators are also improving their programs and adding more safety features in their updates. If you don’t want to do this all the time, you can simply automate the process in Settings. Once you do this, your apps will be updated whenever a new version becomes available.
8. Enable the ‘Find My Device’ Feature
Google has come up with a great solution that will help you in case your phone is lost or stolen. The ‘Find My Device’ feature will help you track your phone, lock it, or play an alarm. In case you can’t find it, you can use it to wipe the device remotely and keep your data safe from harm. To activate this feature, go to Settings and find the feature under ‘Security’.
Wrapping Up
Have you done any of these things to improve the security of your phone or tablet? If you haven’t, get started on them as soon as possible. They’ll make an enormous difference in terms of your safety and ensure that your important data is nearly unreachable to malicious actors.
