Research tells us the average person spends over four hours on the phone every day. When it comes to using a smartphone, many of our clients let us know that they have serious concerns about security. Therefore, we would ask, how long do you spend on your phone? More importantly, if you are spending most of your time on your iPhone, how secure is it?
Do you have the new iPhone X? Have you installed the iOS 11 update? We encourage you to consider making security a priority. You may want to take a few minutes today to clean through your security settings to ensure your device is as safe as you can make it.
Ready to learn more about security on this device? Check out our seven tips to maximize the privacy on your iPhone today!
1. Update your apps. Many of us have a tendency to ignore the number that overlays the top right of our App Store app. This is a notification to let you know it is time to update your phone! Take a minute to actually update all of your apps that have alerts. These updates can fix any bugs within the apps, as well as, update any Security settings.
2. Take advantage of the privacy feature. Whether you have an iPhone X or only the iOS 11 update, you can now have access to a privacy tab that shows you what permission you have given to each one of the apps on your phone. As you search through your Privacy settings, be sure to ask yourself which apps should have access to what. Considerations can include access to things such as your Location, Photos, Microphone, and more.
Further, look for the Analytics and Advertising tab located at the bottom of your privacy settings screen. Within the Analytics tab you can decide if you would like to allow Apple to gather your data. Turning off this feature means you may no longer receive targeted ads that follow your interests.
3. Unlock your phone the hard way. While using facial ID and thumbprint can make unlocking your iPhone a lot easier, it is not your safest option. Your safest option may be to have a passcode on your phone and only use the passcode to unlock your device. You may disable your fingerprint and Face ID in your Settings app.
4. Take advantage of your emergency lock. If you find yourself in a situation where you do not want someone to have access to your phone or someone attempts to take it, tap your power button to lock your phone. Your phone should be locked until you enter in your password.
5. Turn on your emergency SOS features. Go into your Settings app and select Emergency SOS. You can add in emergency contacts that can be contacted upon an emergency. You may also turn on the “auto call” feature which will dial 911 upon using the SOS feature.
To use the SOS feature, press the Sleep button five times rapidly. This can trigger the Emergency SOS feature which sends a message and reaches out to your Emergency contacts, as well as 911, if you have auto call turned on.
6. Turn off your messaging previews. You may go into your notification settings and turn off your iMessage preview to ensure that your messages are kept private. You may also set an expiration on when you would like your messages to be deleted rather than saving all of your messages in your phone forever, unless you want to.
7. Take advantage of Safari’s safety features. The browser Safari gives you different options to help boost your privacy on your phone. Go into Safari in your Settings app and access these settings which include blocking cookies, fraudulent website warnings, and more! Next time you are in your Safari app, take a second to clear your website data and history.
Through investing a few minutes into organizing your data and privacy on your iPhone, you can improve your safety within your device. Consider making these changes sooner rather than later. Does this article raise more questions than it answers? Do not wait to ask us your questions!
