How to make your Android more secure

With hackers getting more advanced, it is important to make sure your Android Smartphone is secure. Unfortunately, you need to take steps to make sure you are not affected by fraud you’re your identity is stolen. You could give hackers access to your financial information, lose all your data or even have private information shared online. With this in mind, read on to get some tips on how to up the security on your Android device.

Encrypt your data

Encryption is basically a secret code that protects your data. WhatsApp released an update last year that made sure all messages you sent to people were encrypted. Once encrypted, your music, photos, apps and account data can’t be read without first unjumbling the information using a unique key. For Android handsets and tablets running Android 5.0 Lollipop or newer, you can navigate straight to the “Security” menu under settings. Getting here might be slightly different depending on your device, but with stock Android, this can be found under Settings > Personal > Security.

Here you should see an option to “Encrypt phone” or “Encrypt tablet”. You’ll be asked to plug your phone in to charge while the process takes place, just to make sure that your phone doesn’t shut off and cause errors. If you haven’t done so already, you will be prompted to set lock screen PIN or password, which you will need to enter when you turn your phone on or unlock it in order to access your newly encrypted files. Be sure to remember this password!

Require a password for all apps

This is particularly important for apps, such as your banking app, that have sensitive data that might compromise your security.  Check out some apps that help you create a password for each app or check the individual app’s setting if there is a lock option.

Check out what security features there are built-in

A lot of new Android devices out there allow multiple types of screen locks ranging from pins to patterns to fingerprint scanners. Some even have facial recognition. All of these options can be found in settings. We personally think that the biometric lock options are a lot safer.

Don’t save all passwords

A lot of people keep their passwords in the notes app on the cell phone. However, if your phone gets stolen or hacked, all that data is easily accessible to the thieves. Rather keep them written down in a safe or in your head is better.

Create Multiple User Accounts

If you share your device with others such as your family, or you have friends that sometimes use it, you should create individual users on the device. If you have a recent model of an Android device you can create a guest account.

Install Anti-virus software

There is Anti-Virus available for Android devices. And like the ones for your PC, there are free and paid for alternatives. However, we always recommend the paid for Anti-Virus. We recommend the ESET Anti-Virus solution for your PC and Smart Phone.

Watch out what permissions apps need

Loads of software and applications are available for Android devices, and you could end up unwittingly downloading harmful applications. For this reason, you need to pay attention to the smartphone agency terms and application permissions before downloading anything. Also, you can set your antivirus to check every app that installs.

Try to avoid financial transactions

If you must do a financial transaction on your phone, make sure you are using your banking app and that it is strongly password protected AND you have an Anti-Virus installed. Rather use your Home Wi-Fi to do such because it is more likely that you will have a dedicated internet line. However, most offices and corporates have a firewall protecting their network which deters intruders.

This article was based on the original at Lifehack.org