In today’s digital world, Android, iOS, and Windows are essential platforms used by people for everything from social media to managing work. Among them, Android is the most popular computing platform globally.
If you’re an Android user, it’s important to know about the safety features and privacy settings available to protect your data and device.
This article will share various ways to enhance your Android privacy, thanks to tech enthusiasts who’ve made it possible to secure your phone and keep your messages, files, and photos private.
How can I improve my privacy and security on my smartphone?
Let’s think, how can I make my Android private and secure? There are a lot of both built-in and third-party tools that will help us. Here are the top 10 tips for a secure Android phone.
Lock Screen Passwords
If you’ve just received a brand new Android mobile device, it’s important to take the necessary steps to keep secure my phone. While devices come with fingerprint sensors, these are only for your convenience and don’t provide complete device security.
To strengthen your protection, consider setting an alphanumeric password. Follow these easy steps to get started:
- Go to Settings
- Choose Lock Screen & Password
- Select Screen Lock
- Choose Password
Additionally, you can hide your lock screen contents to prevent others from seeing your notifications. To do this, follow these steps:
- Go to Settings
- Select Lock Screen & Passwords
- Choose Advanced Settings
- Go to On the Lock Screen
- Choose ‘Don’t Show Notifications At All’ or ‘Show All Notifications But Hide Contents’
Enable 2FA
Protect your Google account with two-factor authentication. This added security measure requires a one-time-use code, alongside your password when you log in from an unfamiliar device. This way, even if your password is leaked or hacked, your account remains protected.
Follow these simple steps to set up two-factor authentication:
- Go to myaccount.google.com/security on your phone and sign in to your Google account.
- Select 2-Step Verification and sign in again.
- Tap Try It Now and follow the on-screen instructions to approve login and get backup codes.
- Your Google account is now linked to your Android phone and requires phone verification for logins from unfamiliar devices.
Use a VPN
Do you want a very easy-to-implement and reliable way how do I ensure security on my Android? All you need is to download VPN for Android and connect to a remote server. Because a VPN like VeePN for Android reroutes traffic, third parties won’t know your real IP address and won’t be able to spy on you. VeePN for Android has many advantages: unblocking blocked sites, traffic encryption, protection when using public Wi-Fi, virus protection, etc. High-level VPN apps like VeePN can also remove ads and even improve page loading speed.
Encrypt Your Device
To keep your device secure, it’s always recommended to utilize encryption. To check if your device is encrypted, try restarting it and see if it prompts for a password. If it doesn’t, simply go to your Settings app and activate the “Encrypt Device” feature.
Just follow the instructions and your phone will be encrypted in no time. Don’t take chances with your digital security – take action now to safeguard your device.
Audit App Permissions
Attention all app users! Did you know that each time you install an app, it may ask for permission to access your hardware and system services? That means your microphone, camera, and location could be up for grabs if you mindlessly tap through these notifications.
Some apps even collect and sell your data to marketing firms. Luckily, Android 11 now automatically resets permissions for dormant apps. But it’s always good to perform an audit and take control of your privacy settings.
Head over to Settings > Privacy > Permission Manager to ensure that your apps only have access to the services they truly need.
Block Location Tracking
Learn how to limit which apps have access to your location on Android. Google has upgraded its privacy practices, preventing third-party and first-party apps from constantly polling your location in the background.
Head to Settings ⇾ Privacy ⇾ Permissions Manager ⇾ Location to adjust your app permissions. Simply choose a tier – Allowed all the time, Allowed only while in use, or Denied – for each app individually.
Find out more about location tracking limits by exploring your phone’s Location permissions manager.
Enable Find My Device
Losing your phone can be disastrous, but with Android’s Find My Device feature, you have a chance to locate it remotely. What’s more, you can also protect your privacy by wiping all your private data in case it’s gone missing for good. Here’s how it works:
Open Settings > Security > Find My Device and toggle it on.
Once enabled, you can remotely track or wipe your device from any browser on the Find My Device page.
Turn Off Backups
Take control of your data and privacy by disabling backups to Google’s servers. Simply navigate to Settings > System > Backup and toggle off Back up to Google Drive.
While this will give you added peace of mind, it’s important to note that you will need to manually restore your contacts’ numbers and SMS chats if you lose or break your phone.
Custom device settings and Wi-Fi passwords will be lost, and photos and videos won’t be backed up. Make sure to assess the trade-off between privacy and convenience before making this decision.
Use a Security Browser
If you’re worried about Google Chrome tracking your online activity, there are other reliable privacy-focused browsers available to use. We suggest Firefox and Firefox Focus as the top picks since they run on a browser engine not developed by Google.
It’s worth noting that several third-party browsers use Google Chrome’s rendering engine – which can negatively impact the web’s health. If neither Firefox nor Firefox Focus suits your needs, some other options to consider are Microsoft Edge, Samsung Internet, or Vivaldi.
Disable Personalized Ads
Attention all! Ad tracking can be invasive and annoying. Companies collect data about you and use it to create personalized ad campaigns. But don’t worry, there’s a way to put a stop to this. Go to Settings > Privacy > Ads and delete your advertising ID. This will prevent companies from tracking you across different apps.
You can also disable ad personalization on Google. For additional protection, use the DuckDuckGo App Tracking Protection feature to block third-party trackers in every app. Protect your privacy and take control of your online experience.
Conclusion
Android offers a variety of features that can help you protect your data and privacy. Take advantage of the latest updates, like Android 11’s automatic reset permissions for dormant apps, to keep your information safe at all times.
Also remember to audit your app permissions regularly, adjust location tracking limits, and disable backups. All this together will help protect your privacy.
