If you’re like most people, your smart phone is an extension of yourself and your life. You sign into email, log into bank accounts, store passwords, family photos, perhaps even your medical information. That is a LOT of information in your hand AND in the hands of a cyberattacker if he or she steals your phone, logs in and gains access to your personal, private and medical information.
In the past, iPhones and high end Android phones were stolen and resold. Now, however, they are being stolen and the information that is on them is what is being resold.
An article in a Brazilian newspaper recently reported that criminals are stealing smartphones and boasting that they can hack and unlock all iPhones. That’s chilling. In fact, where are you reading this article right now? On your phone? Chances are, you are. Our smartphones are our new computers and our lifeline to much of our financial and personal life.
How To Protect The Data On Your Phone
What happens when a thief snatches your smartphone is that they crack the code then remove the SIM card and put it into another phone. They then search your social networks, find your email address and begin the process of hacking into your data. In many cases, individuals use the same email address for their Apple ID or other smartphones login and they use it for their online accounts. Once the hacker has your email and user ID to get into your Apple account, they can get into all your other accounts.
One of the easiest ways that criminals get into your smartphone is by searching out any Notes-type app you may be using. Many users will store credit card and bank passwords there. Some smartphone users have been told to “take photos of the front and back of your credit cards in case they get stolen, you will have the information you need to cancel them.” When you do this you are giving the information a hacker needs to steal your identity, empty your bank accounts and make online purchases.
You may not even know you’ve been hacked because the thief will steal your phone, get the information they need. They take it from the phone’s SIM card and return the SIM card to your phone – and by that time they have already downloaded the information they need.
How can you protect yourself and your data?
- Don’t store passwords and photos of your credit cards on your phone.
- Use a two factor authentication to get into the phone.
- Don’t leave your phone unattended
- Don’t get on a wifi connection that is public.
WareGeeks Solutions is a Roselle, New Jersey-based full-service IT solutions and service provider of cybersecurity, managed IT services and data backups protection and our expert team specializes in Data Protection, specifically Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery (BCDR and we work with medium and large companies, with a focus on law firms and the healthcare industry.
WareGeeks Solutions help organizations transform technology, operations, and service delivery to meet business challenges. We first seek to understand your business needs and then apply our in-depth knowledge of Data Protection, Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery (BCDR), Cyber Security for drafting a roadmap for transformation.
