Mobile phone security PDF

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Mobile phone security...

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There has been a tremendous increase in the number of people that have started to use their smart phones to get online in the last decade or so and so has been the increase in the number of devices that are able to store and transmit sensitive data. As per the Pew Research Center Report conducted in the year 2015, depicts that more than 57 percent of smart phone users are using their smart phones for banking online through their phones. Online banking is just the tip of the iceberg. There is a lot more than just banking online on the phones to do on a smart phone. The GPS application on smart phone every movement of the person although the application is being used or not. Most smart phones require a person to allow them access data stored in the phone or on the cloud. Besides that, a person can receive their verification texts and calls via mobile phones, social media applications post a person’s pictures and location as well as personal data, and fitness applications track health records of a person. A cybercriminal can learn about a person if he or she is able to hack into a person’s mobile phone. Another major concern regarding mobile phone security arises due to the validity of third party applications. For brands like Iphone that uses iTunes and for android phones that use Google play store to install and download applications, there is no standard for safety. Apple has certain standards when it comes to third party applications that they can only be downloaded from iTunes; therefore, they are more secure. But such is not the case with the Google play store or Symbian for Nokia. Nonetheless, there are some things that every individual can do to prevent their mobile phone from getting hacked. And even if the phone gets hacked, one needs to make a backup of their data frequently in case of a crisis (Stroud, n.d.). Sometimes it is better to take precautionary measures well before the disaster occurs. Hence, it is better to follow some safety measures which are mentioned in brief as follows:

1. People should be careful about the information that they are sharing: Sharing posts on Facebook and pictures on Instagram have become a trend in the recent years on which people have been have sharing a good amount of information (Black, 2017). Similarly, Apple has iOS operating system that has iTunes that gives the permission to third party vendors to download applications. But nothing is completely secure. People still need to take protective measures like adding passcode to the phone, changing passwords frequently, using biometrics authentication etc. 2. Create a backup of mobile devices: Be it Apple Iphone or an android phone, creating a backup is very essential. Creating a backup or the data gives a sense of security to the person that even if the person’s phone gets stolen or lost, the person can always recover their data from their source of backup. It is just in a worst-case scenario that the data might get into the wrong hands in case the device gets stolen or lost. Backing up data on Android devices is a good idea any day and in doing so an android mobile phone user can link up everything on their Google account rather than a piece of device that could break at any point or could get stolen by anyone (Black, 2017). 3. Manage permissions for downloading third vendor applications: The most important and basic advantage of downloading application from iOS and Google Play is that they ask users before downloading applications from a third-party vendor. It is basically a safety measure that Google Play and iOS takes that some virus or malware is not downloaded into the user’s mobile device that is hidden or encrypted in the application that they are downloading (Black, 2017).

References F. Stroud., (n.d.)., mobile device security. Retrieved from: https://www.webopedia.com/TERM/M/mobile-device-security.html M. Black., (2017, December 12). How to secure Android. Retrieved from: https://www.techadvisor.co.uk/how-to/google-android/secure-android-3637549/ S. Hill., (2017, April 15). Android phones are safer than you think, says Google’s head of Android security. Retrieved from: https://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/googles-adrian-ludwigsays-android-is-more-secure-than-ever/ K. Zamani., (2013, November 26). Android Intents and Intent filters Example. Retrieved from: https://examples.javacodegeeks.com/android/core/content/intent/android-intents-andintent-filters-example/...