5 important smartphone safety tips

5 important smartphone safety tips

Smartphones can, unfortunately, be easy to steal items, thanks to their small size and often hefty price tag. If your smartphone is stolen, and you haven’t taken the necessary steps to secure it, you could risk identity theft, financial loss, social media hacking, and more. Follow these important smartphone safety tips to ensure that it’s protected at all times, even if it should fall into the wrong hands. 

1) Keep your phone out of sight

Your home security plays a pivotal role in keeping valuables - such as your smartphone - safe, and away from prying eyes. If you aren’t going to be keeping your phone on you, leave it locked away securely inside your home, rather than leaving it on a car seat, for example. Doing this makes it easier for someone to steal, as they could easily smash the car window and reach inside to grab your phone. If your property is equipped with a high-quality home security system, this will make it even harder for thieves to steal your personal belongings - devices such as Indoor Cameras, Outdoor Cameras, Entry Sensors and Motion Sensors all enhance protection even further.

Looking for more tips on how to keep your most loved possessions safe? Our article will tell you everything you need to know. 

2) Set up a strong PIN or passcode

Arguably one of the most important smartphone safety tips is to keep it locked when not in use, which prevents a hacker from having easy access to your personal information. Although it can be tempting to set up a password that’s easy for you to remember, make sure that this isn’t easily guessed - for example, your name, birthday, a pet’s name, or the classic ‘password’. You should also make sure that each password you use - whether it’s for unlocking a device or for your social media accounts - is unique, as this makes the guessing game even harder for hackers. 

If you’d like your online accounts and applications to have an additional layer of security, opt for two-factor authentication. By doing this, anyone attempting to access these would need to have their identity verified not once, but twice. 

For more advice on how to secure your social media, head over to our previous article. 

3) Set up remote tracking, locking and wiping

If your phone is stolen, there are certain platforms and tools available online that can help you not only track where your device is, but also lock and wipe it remotely. So if it isn’t possible to track your smartphone, you can prevent the thief from having access to your personal information - which removes the possibility of further security risks down the line. 

4) Update software and apps

You should always keep both the smartphone itself and all installed applications regularly updated. These updates are designed to optimise user experience, alongside ironing out any potential security issues, so it’s a win-win. If you often forget to perform these updates, you should be able to set them up automatically on your smartphone. 

5) Be cautious of unknown public Wi-Fi hotspots

It isn’t uncommon for certain coffee shops, restaurants, hotels, and so on, to have their own public Wi-Fi. However, connecting to these could risk your smartphone’s security. It’s impossible to know who’s responsible for setting up the hotspot, and whether they’re trustworthy. Although not always the case, it’s possible that they could have access to the documents you’re working on, or your log-in details for apps and websites. The best way to avoid this from happening is to resist connecting to public hotspots and to instead use your mobile network to use the internet - whether that be 3G, 4G or 5G. 

Keep your valuables protected around the clock with the SimpliSafe home security system. To start customising your system, get in touch with a member of our team today.