Mobile devices have become a staple in contemporary life, with more business uses added regularly. Unfortunately, this makes them a more enticing target for cyber criminals to go after. To help you keep your phone secure, we’ve assembled a brief list of best practices for you and the rest of your company to follow.
Keep Your Phone Secure with You in Public
This one is a bit of a no-brainer, unless you want to have your phone stolen. You should never leave your phone unattended in a public place. Not only could your own data be put at risk, but if you’ve accessed company documents via a Bring Your Own Device policy, who knows what the person who took your device might find before your device is remotely wiped? Besides, phones are by no means cheap, so it isn’t something you want to lose anyway.
Keep Your Credentials Safe
Most phones today offer to store things like passwords, PINs, and payment card details in order to make things more convenient for the user. However, this holds true if the user isn’t actually you, but is a cyber criminal who has stolen the device. It is better to simply not store these kinds of credentials in your phone, but if you absolutely must, only use a secure application to do so. If you aren’t sure which ones are secure, we can steer you in the right direction.
Use Networks Wisely to Keep Phone Secure
While Bluetooth and Wi-Fi are extremely useful means of connecting to the Internet and the peripherals you are trying to leverage, doing so without being mindful of your security is a dangerous prospect. Unprotected and unsecured networks can open your device to threats (along with any data stored on it). Do your best to avoid connecting to unknown networks and signals to keep from leaving your phone vulnerable to threats.
Regularly Remove Data from Your Phone
Your phone has a pretty good memory (so to speak) which means that it will retain a lot of data. Whether it’s your autocomplete feature keeping a record of personal data you have typed, or your browsing history providing an in-depth summary of your use of your phone, hackers and cyber criminals find precisely this kind of information to be valuable to them. Clearing this data reduces the information that a hacker could potentially access.
When it comes to protecting your data – both business and personal – you need to consider all the ways that it is vulnerable to hackers. WheelHouse IT can help you do so. To learn more, reach out to us at (877) 771-2384.
