Privacy is a growing concern among smartphone users. Even if you’ve already taken steps to protect your data when it comes to your computer, it won’t amount to anything without a secure mobile device.
Make no mistake – the privacy of Android users is under attack, and certain default settings are configured in a way that doesn’t have your best interests in mind – and that is done entirely on purpose.
A vast majority of the smartphones on the market today use Android’s operating system. Such a large user base results in a huge amount of data – which is an enticing opportunity – both for corporations in need of profit, and potentially governments as well.
But you aren’t left without a course of action. There are steps that you can take to ensure a higher level of security and privacy on your Android device – and we’ll go over the most important ones down below.
The Basics
There are plenty of steps that you can take to ensure a better level of privacy on your Android device – in the section below, we’ll be covering the basics – the things that you can do simply by adjusting a couple of your phone’s settings.
Passwords and Encryption
If you’re already thinking about privacy, we don’t have to tell you to use a password. However, not all passwords are equally effective from a privacy standpoint.
Using face recognition, a pattern, or a fingerprint might be convenient, but a strong alphanumeric password is still the best approach. Legal regulations regarding the other locking methods are still murky – and providing Google with biometric data such as fingerprints and facial scans is a terrible idea – and that’s putting it mildly.
You should also make sure that your phone is encrypted – as plenty of manufacturers ship devices that aren’t encrypted by default.
Installing Apps
In general, you should avoid third-party app stores and other untrustworthy sources when it comes to installing apps.
Google’s Play Store does check apps for malicious content – but some malware will always slip between the cracks. Before you decide to bite the bullet and install a particular app, do your research – read the reviews, check which permissions the app requires, and be informed – a simple Google search can go a long way in determining whether an app is trustworthy or not.
Check The Permissions
Speaking of permissions, they are one of Android’s chief advantages, privacy-wise. The permissions system allows you to tailor which apps can access different segments of your phone’s data, such as location, call history, text messages, and so forth.
In general, if an app asks for permissions that make sense when you think about what it does – then you can proceed. If an app requires a huge amount of permissions – particularly those that don’t make any sense, you should avoid it.
Of course, less is always better when it comes to permissions – so make sure to consider alternatives to the app in question as well.
Regularly Re-Check and Audit your Permissions
Oftentimes, an app will acquire additional permissions through an update – and it’s easy to overlook such changes. Make a point of scheduling a monthly or bi-monthly audit of your phone’s permissions.
Open Settings, and select Apps – then navigate to the option labeled app permissions. This will give you an overview of which apps currently have which permissions. If you’re interested in a specific app, you can also change permissions from its app info page.
Additional Protection
What we’ve covered so far is a barebones, bare essentials approach to privacy. But if you’re serious about protecting your data, there are some additional steps that you should take.
Google Settings
A huge amount of services that this OS provides is dependent on signing in and using your Google account – which comes with its own suite of information gathering and tracking.
Heading to My Activity on your Google profile via a web browser allows you to select an option called Activity controls from the sidebar. This will allow you to turn off ad personalization, YouTube history, location history, and web & app activity.
A couple of settings can be adjusted from within the phone itself. In your phone’s settings, select Google, then Backup – this will allow you to prevent Google Drive from storing information. You can also delete existing backups – but you’ll have to do this from within the Google Drive app or web page.
While you’re still in Google settings on your phone, select Ads. This will open a menu that also allows you to reset your advertising ID and opt-out of ad personalization.
And no, we didn’t include ad personalization twice by mistake – the first option only prevents personalized ads inside the browser, which is why you should adjust both settings.
Use a VPN
A VPN or virtual private network is a crucial and necessary tool when it comes to privacy. VPN’s route all of your traffic through a secure, encrypted connection, allowing you to keep your browsing history, IP address, location, and data safe from prying eyes.
You should definitely use a VPN – however, your choice of provider is also very important. You should steer clear of free VPNs, as they have a bad reputation – and that reputation is well-earned.
Because of the fact that they are free, such services often rely on ads to make a profit. On its own, that could be just a minor inconvenience – but plenty of free VPN providers have been caught tracking online activity, selling data to advertisers, and even selling bandwidth.
Such free services also have an incomparably worse infrastructure – with a small number of servers and a limited amount of data that can be used. To make things even worse, free VPNs often slow down your internet and are by and large riddled with malware and spyware – more than enough reason to give them a wide berth.
This is an open-and-shut case – premium VPNs are the way to go. A reputable VPN provider will give you security, speed, and functionality – and they’re usually quite fairly priced, once you consider what you’re getting for your money.
There are a lot of good premium VPNs out there – and they have different strengths and weaknesses. However, when it comes to privacy, there are a couple of features that you should focus on. We recommend finding a service with a large user base that doesn’t keep logs, and which uses the latest encryption methods, as well as the most secure and up-to-date protocols.
Alternative Browsers, Email Providers, and Operating Systems
You’re not limited to the default browser that comes with your phone. It should come as no surprise that Chrome has a lot of built-in features that compromise your privacy.
If you want to do everything in your power to protect your data, consider alternatives such as Firefox Focus, Brave, or DuckDuckGo.
The privacy risks aren’t contained to Chrome – Google’s entire suite suffers from the same issues. Gmail is ubiquitous – but it isn’t the only email provider out there – and plenty of other providers have a much better record when it comes to privacy.
Lastly, you should be aware of the fact that non-Google versions of Android do exist. The most famous and well-made of these is LineageOS – but installing a different operating system on your phone is a major decision, and a pretty complicated, but doable process.