In just a few years the iPhone has become a huge worldwide success selling over 100,000,000 (100 million) units since it first launched. Therefore it should come as no surprise that there are an increasing number of malicious attacks on the iPhone software creating a need for iPhone antivirus apps.
Given the amount of personal data your iPhone stores about you, it is a good idea to learn how to secure your iPhone and protect yourself from attack. It is actually really simple to do with the right settings and iPhone antivirus software. More on that later, first I would like to explain precisely why you need to take appropriate steps to protect yourself.
Your iPhone Knows Everything
One of the biggest concerns is the huge amount of personal data the iPhone stores about you. When you actually stop and think about how much information your iPhone holds about you it is quite shocking. We use them every day and perhaps take the convenience of them for granted.
If you ever lost it or had it stolen, would your data be protected from prying eyes? Worse still, how do you know your iPhone doesn’t have a virus and granting remote access to all of your personal data?
It is important to take steps to protect yourself before anything like that happens; as it’s usually too late to do anything once it does happen.
The Most Recent iPhone Virus
Just to be clear, in general the iPhone is much more secure and less susceptible to an attack than the Android operating system. However that doesn’t mean that the iPhone hasn’t had its fair share of attacks each getting more complex as hackers develop and evolve their viruses.
The most recent exploit came through a vulnerability that was found in the way the iPhone deals with PDF files. It was possible for a hacker to gain full root access to the iPhone with this exploit. Once in they can do all sorts of damage, such as sending messages, copying your personal data, deleting your personal data, accessing a live view of the cameras/microphone and more.
It is threats like this that mean you need to take smartphone security seriously. Don’t wait to catch a virus, protect yourself now.
How To Secure Your iPhone In 5 Minutes
Following my simple tips it will take just 5 minutes to protect your iPhone from loss, theft and viruses. Just follow the steps below.
Enable Auto Screen Lock
The first thing you want to do is enable the auto screen lock feature. This will automatically lock the screen after a set period of time. To do this go to-
iPhone Settings > General Tab > Auto-Lock
Once you have enabled the auto lock feature, I would then suggest you setup a passcode to unlock the phone. This is done by going to-
iPhone Settings > General Tab > Passcode Lock
After you have enabled the auto lock and passcode lock your iPhone will be protected from both loss and theft. You won’t have to worry about anyone getting access to all of your personal data or racking up a huge phone bill in your name if you misplace your phone.
It might be inconvenient to have to enter a passcode lock every time you unlock your phone, but mobile phone theft has seen a huge rise in the past few years so taking this step to protect yourself is a good idea.
Clean Up Your Personal Data
Have a think about what personal data is currently stored on your iPhone. Is there sensitive information such as passwords or card details stored on the device? What about personal data that is stored in your E-mail account? People could gain full access to your email if they found your phone.
Just have a general clear up of any unnecessary personal data, you will be surprised what is actually on your phone.
Improve Your Web Browsing Security Settings
It is likely that you use the included iPhone Safari browser that comes with the iPhone when browsing the web. Although it is a very secure browser there are a couple of tweaks that we can make to further boost the security of the browser and the phone.
The first thing you want to do is disable popups completely. All you need to do is toggle the option found at-
iPhone Settings > Safari > Block Popups
Once you have blocked popups I would also recommend you clear your cookies. Cookies often hold authentication data and can be used to access your accounts so clearing them regularly is a good idea. Clearing your cookies is easy, just go to-
iPhone Settings > Safari > Clear Cookies
Install An iPhone Antivirus App
With the growing trend in attacks on the iPhone, we have started to see the first generation of iPhone antivirus apps and software appearing on the Apple AppStore. There are a couple available but I would recommend you stick with the Intego Virus Barrier as that is the best antivirus for iPhone at the moment.
Intego Virus Barrier
At the moment this is the cream of the crop when it comes to the iPhone antivirus app world. It is compatible with a range of iOS devices including the iPad, iPod Touch and of course the iPhone.
The app can scan for a wide range of threats and is the most comprehensive antivirus for iPhone available. Here are some of the features-
- Scan local files for viruses and malicious software
- Search within compressed files
- Checks all incoming and outgoing messages
- Checks websites as you browse
- Regular updates with new antivirus definitions
Don’t hesitate, make sure you download and install the Virusbarrier iPhone antivirus app as soon as possible. It only takes a minute!
Coming To An End
If you have followed all of the steps above Your iPhone and personal data should now be much better protected from viruses, malicious attacks, loss and theft. If you’re in a rush and don’t have time to read through the full article and do the steps now then make sure you bookmark it and do it as soon as possible. Make sure you install some sort of iPhone antivirus application at the very least.