Something I've noticed over the past month is the tremendous amount of smartphones in use, whether at the grocery store, or in a local coffee shop. These devices are really pretty amazing, even playing some of the most high definition games on a simple little phone. I saw someone swipe their shopping card at the register the other day, I sure could use that. Up until the most recent series of smartphones, most people didn't really have the ability to store information other than contacts or small pictures on their phones. But now, the opportunities are endless. Most have browsing history available, pictures, videos, stored passwords, emails, and the list goes on and on, what's next? credit cards?
So what are people doing to ensure the sensitivity of the information stored on these devices remains sensitive?
The short answer is very little. I haven't come across many smartphones with a password set, and the memory card has only become increasingly easier to get at. Next time you have a few minutes (please not while driving your car), take a look at the security settings available to you.
- Ensure you have a password on the device .
- Review your application settings, do any applications have permissions to send information to the internet about you?
- Check on your internet browser settings, paying special attention to your identity and privacy options.
- Review the media (pictures, videos, text logs) that you keep on the device.
- Check into solutions that will send a remote wipe to your device, in case its lost.
- Know how to contact your provider to report the device lost or stolen as soon as possible.
Share your ideas for keeping smartphones and other mobile devices secure!
Jacob Harris is a Vulnerability and Forensics analyst at Westfield Insurance. Sharing Knowledge. Building Trust.
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