“Don’t let your guard down over your smartphone security.” Falgun Rathod, India’s Top Cyber Security Expert

Falgun Rathod

Just like the world has gone digital, so have the crimes. Criminals are no longer around your neighbourhoods looking for their next opportunity to snatch your purse or gold chain, but they are now executing an organized theft digitally while sitting anywhere in the world. They are scamming and duping you right under your nose, literally, from the other side of your very own mobile screen, while you are going about your day, communicating, sharing information, accessing banking accounts, and shopping online.

Today our mobile carries our entire presence. From our social media accounts to our email logins, from our financial cards and banking details to our KYC documents, from our personal photos and videos to our entire phonebook contacts. Every time we use our phone on a network connection, we risk it all in the hands of hackers.

However, one of India's top cyber security experts and Managing Director of Cyber Octet Private Limited, Falgun Rathod suggests, "With a little effort and smartness, there are a few ways to prevent hackers from gaining access to our device, and keep your guards up whenever you go online with your smartphone."

Never Jailbreak: Freedom to download any application that may not be otherwise made available by the manufacturer requires you to compromise with the security settings of your phone. This can be fun but will cost you your privacy and data. When you jailbreak your phone, you not only take away your software's ability to update, but you also take down all security measures that the manufacturer has built for your smartphone, such as virus protection. It's like taking the armour off before facing the enemies.

Enable auto-lock: It goes without saying that enabling a passcode, password, or biometric lock on your phone is the first basic step towards securing it. However, there are moments when the phone isn't in your hand, and it is idle in an unlocked position. For such vulnerable moments, an auto-lock feature comes to rescue your phone's privacy. Although signing in at every interval can get annoying, we suggest an auto-lock at 30-seconds of no activity is a good bet.

Beware of Phishing: If you haven't been a victim of phishing so far, you are lucky. However, that does mean you haven't been targeted yet. Those clickable links you receive claiming free gifts from well-known brands such as Adidas, Nike, McDonald's, H&M, etc., are all attempts of phishing by the cybercriminals. Phishing entices the recipient to click on links that appear so legitimate, that even some of the most tech-savvy fall prey to it. The best thing is to beware of such links, never click or open them, or send any sensitive or financial information through them. Most importantly, once you receive a link like that, delete it. Do not forward it to others and stop the chain right there.

Turn Off that Auto-Fill: Enjoy the Auto-fill feature? Who doesn't! The convenience of filling in your information in a breeze, which includes your personal as well as some of your financial details, may sound like smart work, but is extremely risky as well, especially, when you allow your phone to be used by others, once in a while. The best bet is to always keep the auto-fill feature off to be safe rather than sorry.

In addition to the above keeping, your software updated regularly is a key to ensuring your smartphone security for a long time. The iOS and Android manufacturers are diligently working towards launching new software updates to watertight your phone's security. As bothersome as they appear, they are imperative for your phone's security.

Enabling other features such as two-step authentication, creating longer and complex passwords or pattern locks, and last but not the least, turning on the ‘self-destruct mode' on your phone are some ways to stay safe and secure with your smartphone.