Android has emerged out to be a big player in the industry of operating systems. In 2019 android’s market share was around 85%. It means most of the mobile devices in the world run on android. At the same time, these devices mainly depend upon android’s privacy features for their data privacy.

These days users are also concerned to safeguard their private information. And this concern is pretty obvious as well because of some recent data breaches. 

So today in this article we are going to discuss 5 data privacy tips that you can use on your android devices.

But before that let’s collect some basic information about android. 

What is Android?

Android is an operating system mainly used on mobile phones and tablets. It is an open-source project which was first developed by Android, Inc. Later this project was acquired by Google in 2005. 

Google’s main intention behind acquiring was that they could clearly see the increasing trend of mobile devices. Eventually in 2007 Google rolled out its first android operated mobile device.

Top Rival of Android

The top rival of android in this industry is IOS. Although IOS has a very small market share in front of Google (15%), but still if you ask a developer then android lacks in security in front of IOS. 

Why Android is Easy to Hack?

There are many loopholes in the security system of android. That’s why it becomes easy to hack them and breach data without any trace. Every six-seven month hackers develop new methods and malware to trick the users. Some of those tricks are mentioned below:-

1. Hacking by Malicious Link

It is very easy to put payloads and backdoors in android. So hackers use tools that are publicly available on Github and made for this specific purpose. By using these they generate payloads and backdoors.

Then they send links to the users made out of these tools. They often send links via WhatsApp or email. And as soon as you click the link then your device is permanently hacked. A connection has been established between your and hacker’s PC.

2. By Using Images

You heard it right, the same can be done to you by an image or graphic. Hackers can embed the payload behind the image and upload it to popular games and online platforms. 

The most horrible thing about this way is that even your close ones can do this to you. They can send you that image on your demand and hurray you are down.

5 Data Security Tips 

So here comes the most important part of the article. Here are 5 data security actions that every android user must take on his/her phone.

1. Avoid Installing Suspicious Files

Always install google verified apps on your mobiles and tablets. People install anything without caring about the source of the file. And this way most people put their privacy in danger. 

Most people install the apks provided by suspicious torrent websites like movierulz2 and tamilrockers. With apks, it is even easier for hackers to deploy payloads.

Other than apps and apks you should also avoid even the .txt and the PDF format files from unknown sources. Because recently some youtube channels have been hacked using these simple .txt  and PDF files.

2. Check App Permissions

Android introduced the app permission setting a few years back. With this, you can restrict the app from accessing some specific features of your system. Although some apps will not run after turning off some features like access to the microphone, camera, contacts, location, etc.

There are many apps available on the play store that clears all your app permission after you are done with using the app.

3. Try VPNs

VPN is also a way to protect your online privacy. VPN routes the traffic through an encrypted connection before they hit the open internet.

There are many VPN providers like Express and Nord that can do the work for you. Both of them are paid services. But it totally worth their cost. Avoid using the free ones as they could be selling your data.

4. Rooting Your Phone

Rooting is like the most advanced version of security. We will recommend you this only if you are a developer. Because a single mistake can ruin your device and make it useless. 

Basically with rooting you get the root access to the android operating system’s code. That way you can customize the themes, graphics. You can even update the software of your outdated device which no longer updated by the manufacturer.

But as we mentioned that doing this can be a little risky work. Because if you are not experienced then you can create a device that can be easily hacked with a line of command.

5. Find My Device Setup

You should also set up Google Find My Device. This is a data security feature that works in case if you misplace your device. After setting up the feature you can lock your device remotely. You can even wipe off your data remotely cutting the risk of your private data going in the wrong hands.

Keep in mind that you can also track your device location with this feature which results in faster draining of your battery.

6. Use Screen Lock

This is the most simple way to protect your privacy. Because I think the worst wounds are given by the ones whom we trust the most. 

Setup screen locks and app locks especially on your photos and banking apps. Sometimes the person whom we trust the most can leak our passwords and personal data very easily. So it is better to take precautions than being sorry.

Final words

At last in a nutshell, you should never trust anybody when it comes to your personal data. Most of the above-mentioned techniques are basic and can be practiced by everyone. Always try to stay away from suspicious links and people online. If you like this article feel free to share it with your friends and spread some awareness about data privacy. Thank you…