subject: Top Tips on Keeping Your Mobile Phone Secure [print this page] We take it for granted that besides the physical threat of theft, our PCs and laptops are threatened by viruses, spamming and hacking. Yet many of us have a casual attitude to our mobile phones, finding it hard to imagine these threats on a mobile platform. However, the functions of mobile phones have diversified and these threats have become more acute.
Additionally the availability of 24 month contracts have made top-range pay monthly phones more affordable and now it is not just business users who are using smartphones on a daily basis. Three years ago the majority of us would have used our mobile devices solely for texting and calling. Today they are productive tools for email, work on the go, internet shopping, diary management and online banking. It's clear that our phones now hold sensitive data that needs to be secured.
The Basics
There are some simple precautions you can take to prevent theft and to protect your phone if it is stolen or lost:
Keep your phone hidden if you're not using it.
Update your device with the latest firmware to keep it fortified against viruses and hacking.
Bar premium calls and text with your network provider to minimise charges if your stolen phone is used by others.
Lock your phone with a password. Some phones have a default pin code that also restores factory settings Nokias use 12345. It is best to change this to prevent someone wiping out your phone. Change passwords and access codes on a regular basis.
Check your phone is covered by your home contents insurance. If it is not, consider taking out insurance on your phone.
Take note of your phone's IMEI number. This is a unique number for your handset found under the battery cover or on the box. If your phone gets lost or stolen, this number will help your SIM provider lock down the phone and help the police identify it if is recovered.
Register your phone's number with the Immobilise National Property Register online. This will help you track it if it is recovered.
Protecting Your Business Interests
If you use your phone for business you may have stronger concerns for managing your device's security.
Add an extra degree of safety by using a different password for your voicemail.
Save sensitive data and work documents to your phone's internal storage memory rather than an additional memory card. These are easy to remove and duplicate.
If you do keep data on a memory card, ensure you encrypt the content with a password. This will prevent the card from being read externally.
If you are worried about your business emails getting intercepted, BlackBerries and some Nokia business devices have a built-in encryption option. If you have an iPhone 4 there are also some third party apps available.
Microsoft Exchange lets IT administrators remotely wipe a handset when it's lost or stolen. It also syncs emails, contacts and calendar entries meaning you'll always have these backed up on a remote server. It also uses encryption as a default; this protects your calls and data during transit so even if they are intercepted a decryption key is needed to make sense of it.
Other Tips
Though it's rare, your phone is still susceptible to viruses, phishing emails, and Trojans from emails and browsing the net. Like a laptop, you can get third-party security solutions from McAfee and Symantec to help with this.
If you intend to sell your phone don't forget to wipe all the data off it. You can do this by resetting the phone to factory settings but don't forget to check for and manually delete apps and email settings that might not have been reset.
