An Android phone is a smartphone that uses the Android operating system, developed by Google and based on the Linux kernel. The majority of smartphones in the world are either built with the Android OS or iOS (the OS used on Apple handheld devices).
Because there have previously been some issues with Android being prone to malware, a lot of people now believe that if you don’t use iOS, your phone is not secure. Google has done a lot to make Android as secure as possible, as they have a whole team dedicated to Android security. This team is responsible for going through online forums looking for new methods to find security vulnerabilities on Android phones and getting them fixed.
It’s safe to say that Android is an open system that (allows and) expects its community of users to know and do the right thing. It requires certain permissions to carry out some functions that might lead to your data being compromised. We might see something like a pop-up when we want to download certain applications, like-allowing us to have access to your gallery. Allow this app to make changes to your device? allowed to run over other applications? With this, it gives you the opportunity to make the final verdict on what to download, install, and what permissions they’re allowed to use.
Android security chief, Adrian Ludwig, once said that – less than an estimated 0.001% of app installations on Android are able to evade the system’s multi-layered defenses and causing harm to users. Meaning there are layers of security that have been adopted by Google for Android which must be passed through for final permission.
Let’s look at Google Play Protect and Android 11 to illustrate this-
Google Play Protect
This is a process adopted by Google through the Google Play store used to scan apps uploaded to Play to ensure they are free from malware.
Android 11 and security
Taking a look at Android 11, which is one of Google’s newest inventions, was initially released in February 2020. This new version of Android uses permissions on a case-by-case basis. That is, the permissions granted by the user run only while the application is open until it is closed, and when the app is reopened, another permission needs to be granted by the user for it to run.
Also, Android 11 will automatically block an app that has been denied permission by the user twice, and if the user then eventually wants to run the app, he has to grant permission to such an app manually.
Where a permission was granted to an app and it has not been used for months, the permission will automatically be nullified and can only be granted manually again by the user. This and many more security upgrades are coming to Android 11.
But if you still think your Android phone isn’t as secure, below are some steps to enhance your smartphone’s security.
Ways to Secure Your Android Smartphone
- Setting your security password, pattern, face unlock, or fingerprint unlock. The safest is a complicated one but might be forgotten.
- Set up two-step verification on your Google account: Follow the steps on your device.
- Go to Security settings on your account after you sign-in.
- Turn on 2-Step Verification. Now, whenever your Google account wants to be logged in on another device, a code will be sent to you, with which you will confirm and authenticate your login. This way, hackers can not access your account with just your username and password.
- Turn on Find My Device (Settings > Security > Find My Device). This enables you to track your device when it is stolen or lost.
- Always turn off Bluetooth when not in use, as it enables other devices to connect remotely.
- Try to control the urge to connect to Wi-Fi from unknown sources. Instead, create a VPN (Virtual Private Network). Be it a downloaded third-party app, or configure the one built into your phone to protect and secure your internet activities.
- You can install applications like anti-virus apps to help you with your security, and please, paid apps are more beneficial than free apps (this may not always be true in certain situations though).
- Also, try as much as possible to read and learn more about the files and apps you want to download before actually downloading them. And mind the permissions you grant certain apps or websites.
Basically, the security of your Android device is primarily dependent on you, the user. Apart from the above-listed ways to secure your Android phone, there are so many other ways to secure it and, for the record, avoid excesses.