We carry our phones everywhere and use them for everything. In our rush to be productive, we often forget that our phones are also prime targets for would-be hackers.
With such a wealth of data in nearly everyone’s pocket, it’s no surprise that some of the world’s brightest minds have dedicated themselves to cracking smartphone security.
With that as our backdrop, here are some of the most common methods for your smartphone to steal your data.
- SMS Phishing or SMSishing
You probably give out your phone number all the time online—when you sign up for services, send out resumes, and so on. It’s impossible to know who has your phone number at any given time, but it’s safe to assume that many people you’d rather not have it have it.
- Your phone contains private and financial information
Your smartphone contains personal emails and texts, pictures of loved ones, social security numbers, credit card information, and even access to bank accounts.
If the device is infected with malware or other malicious software, someone could easily steal all of that information in a matter of minutes by tapping into everything you do on your smartphone.
- Physical thievery
Physical phone theft is a nightmare scenario for most people. Even if you have phone insurance through your carrier, it can take time and money to replace and restore everything.
And in the case of lost or forgotten phones, if they are not password-protected, anyone who finds them has unrestricted access to all of your information.
- Scams and hacking attempts on smartphones can be more difficult to detect
Why might it be more difficult to detect scams and hacking attempts on a smartphone rather than a desktop or laptop computer?
The user has everything they need at their fingertips, making it difficult to identify these scams and/or hacking attempts. As a result, they may not recognise certain behaviours as suspicious.
To read our blog on “How To manually solve the iPhone boot loop and dark screen,” click here
