According to information released by dscout, a data research firm, the average smartphone user interacts with their phone approximately 2600 times each day. As we become more reliant on our phones for communication, daily tasks, and work, it’s increasingly important that we use good safety practices to keep our digital information secure.
To do so, there are some bad habits that smartphone users might have developed that need to be broken. Let’s take a look.
1. Not Locking Your Phone
According to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), a third of smartphone users don’t even secure their phone with a password. While the convenience of an unlocked phone may be appealing, setting a simple password lock can at least prevent the most basic of forced entry tactics and prevent a casual thief from accessing your private data.
2. Not Updating Your Operating System
When your phone pops up with a message saying that it needs to upgrade the operating system to the newest version, it’s not an interruption designed to annoy you. Most operating system updates contain security patches and other fixes that can help keep your phone safe from new types of cyber attacks.
3. Not Backing Up Your Phone
If you fail to back up your phone regularly, you run the risk of losing all of those important messages, photos, and contacts in the event that your phone is lost, stolen or damaged. Most phones have an auto-backup feature that can be enabled from within the settings menu, which will automatically store your data on a cloud-based backup at regular intervals.
4. Not Being Smart About Public Wi-Fi Networks
Let’s face it – many of us have probably had our phone connect to a public wi-fi network without paying attention and gone on to access our email, bank information, and other important data. Unfortunately, being on an unsecured network increases your risk of having your smartphone breached by a malicious user, which can give them a backdoor into any data you access. As a best practice when using public networks, it’s recommended that you avoid accessing any important or sensitive information.
5. Not Taking Advantage of Anti-Theft Capability
Smartphones come in all shapes and sizes, but for the most part, they can fit in the palm of your hand. An unfortunate side effect of this convenience is that they can also be easily dropped or misplaced. If your smartphone is stolen, not only is your data at risk but your expensive device is gone. On most mobile devices, you can easily take advantage of theft deterrent and phone recovery software like Find My iPhone or Android Device Manager. These applications can help you recover your device, or can even lock and erase your phone if you determine it can’t be recovered.
