When was the last time you changed your passwords on social media platforms, the online banking app or your email provider? That was quite a while ago? Then the Change-your-password day on 1. February but the perfect opportunity to tidy up the password jungle and assign new, secure login information again. This is the only way to protect your personal data, but also, for example, your profiles on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Co. best possible protection against unauthorized access.
The ultimate checklist to protect yourself from hackers:
Hackers often have an easy game these days, as many people unfortunately totally underestimate the topic of smartphone security when surfing the Internet. With the following article we would like to change that: We go into potential gateways for cyber criminals and give tips on how you can best protect yourself and your Samsung phone from hacker attacks. With the following measures you can secure your cell phone in the best possible way against unauthorized access:
1. Protection against viruses: Install firewall and antivirus software
Probably the most effective and at the same time easiest means against unauthorized access is the installation of a Antivirus app on the smartphone. Many antivirus apps use a virus scanner by default to scan all files and applications on the phone and check for malicious software or viruses. If you want to be on the safe side and spend money on antivirus software, you get additional protection options like real-time protection, which u. a. Detects spy apps in real time and takes countermeasures immediately. Considering how much money current flagship smartphones like the Samsung Galaxy S21 cost and how long the device is expected to work, the investment in paid antivirus software is well worth it.
The firewall is another security option that you can download as an app on the smartphone to protect yourself from cyberattacks. The firewall monitors the network activities of all applications on the cell phone and intervenes if necessary to prevent a dangerous connection. Of course, the user retains control over the data stream of his smartphone in the process.
Our Galaxy EXPERTS tip:
You want to install an additional firewall app on your phone? Remember that setting up such a firewall requires manual input, so as not to block all the apps you already have at once.
2. Secure accounts: protect data with strong and up-to-date passwords
123456, password1, qwertz123 – the list of Germans’ most popular passwords could go on and on. If you also use one of these or similar passwords, hackers have an easy time logging into your user accounts. If you want to protect your accounts from unauthorized access, you should use strong passwords and update them at regular intervals. As a general rule: Use a combination of upper and lower case letters, numbers and special characters for passwords and keep the password separate from your smartphone. A piece of paper with passwords has absolutely no place in a cell phone case.
3. Secure networks: Avoid public WLAN hotspots
Public WLAN hotspots are everywhere these days: in shopping malls, hotels, bus stops, supermarkets or cafes – public WLAN networks are extremely convenient, often free of charge and, above all, they help you save mobile data volume.
On the other hand, public WLAN hotspots are also an Danger source for your smartphone security: strangers can tap your data or smuggle malware onto your smartphone via openly accessible WLAN networks.
Therefore, you should never make transfers via online banking or Samsung Pay in public WLAN networks! It is also important to avoid insecure data connections that are not protected by HTTPS certificates.
Our Galaxy EXPERTS tip:
In order to protect yourself and your data as best as possible, it makes sense to use a VPN, i.e. a Virtual Private Network, to fall back. The VPN routes your own smartphone connection to the network via a server, also changes the IP address and thus increases anonymity. The information transmitted through the VPN provider is encrypted, which makes it much more difficult for cybercriminals and hackers to do their work.
VPN networks are available for free and for a fee, and the services and the level of protection can differ greatly. It is therefore worth looking at the offerings on the market to find the best smartphone protection for you.
4. Up-to-date software: perform necessary updates
At irregular intervals, Samsung provides you with so-called security updates for the Galaxy phone, which close a wide variety of security gaps and improve the virus protection of your smartphone. Alphabet resp. Google releases security patches for its own Android operating system every month, which smartphone manufacturers then have to adapt to the user interface of the respective model – a very costly and time-consuming affair. Conversely, this also means that the cheaper phones from unknown manufacturers receive these updates only irregularly, whereas security updates are made on a regular basis for well-known and established brands such as Samsung or Xiaomi.
Google is constantly working on further optimizations and improvements of the Android operating system. About once a year the company releases a new version of Android. The latest version is called Android 11, which has replaced the previous version Android 10. Nevertheless, updates for the older operating system variants are released regularly as well. Only when a version is actually ‘old’, this version of the operating system is no longer provided with security updates.
5. Protection from hacker attacks: Install only official apps
Another important point in terms of smartphone security is apps, or more precisely the source for downloading and subsequently installing the apps: download only Apps from the original stores or. from Google Play and avoid all other platforms. The mentioned sources have a sophisticated check management for all applications that are available for download. So, among other things, not only the developer of the app, but also the operator of the app, as well as privacy criteria, etc. Verified for legal concerns. If you do not follow this advice, hackers have an easy game. They can easily gain access to your Galaxy phone by modifying the source code of popular apps and injecting malware and viruses into them.
Especially with Android, the temptation is very high to download apps on other platforms as well, since individual APK files can be installed manually. Clicking on the download directory is usually enough here.
To take advantage of the lack of information and ignorance of some users, more and more hackers are also spreading fake WhatsApp Premium and Facebook Premium apps on the web. This is also how hackers get private user data.
6. Protection from hackers – use two-factor authentication
Two-factor authentication makes it harder for third parties to access your smartphone. It works like this: The user receives a temporary code on the registered cell phone number through two-factor authentication and has to enter it for verification when the system asks for it. It can be a bit annoying to enter a few more digits than usual – but it’s worth the extra effort. If a hacker tries to access someone else’s account, he will be asked to enter the code sent by SMS. However, only the user of the smartphone receives this code – the unauthorized third party thus has bad cards.
7. Deny physical access: Activate screen lock
Physical assaults pose just as relevant a threat alongside digital dangers. That’s why it’s worth protecting your Galaxy smartphone or Galaxy tablet from this too. The screen lock is sometimes the easiest and quickest measure here, as it is one of the most important protective blocks. With Samsung Galaxy smartphones, you can choose between PIN code locking and pattern unlocking, with the PIN code being the more secure option. If you like pattern unlocking better, make sure to turn off the visibility of the drawn lines, which are, after all, created when you draw patterns. This makes tracing the line and possible tracing impossible in the first place.
On the other hand, you can unlock your Galaxy phone using your biometric data. These data are either the fingerprint, the face or the iris. In terms of security, the latter methods are all more secure than the PIN code or the PIN code. A password.