AARP Hearing Center
How Can I Make My Smartphone More Secure?
Pay attention to these privacy and security permissions and settings on your smartphone
A strong password is just the start — smart digital habits help keep your phone and personal information secure.
Paul Spella (Getty images 2)
Key takeaways
- Start with beefing up basic protections like strong passwords, biometrics and two-factor authentication.
- Review permissions for new and existing apps to control access to your location, photos, camera and more.
- Use advanced features such as tracking controls, app security tools and, if needed, Lockdown mode to safeguard the device and your data.
AARP members and readers are invited to submit pressing technology questions they’d like me to tackle in my Tech Guru column, including issues around devices, security, social media and how all the puzzle pieces fit together.
This week’s column focuses on key security settings on your phone.
More Ways to Benefit...
- Related Benefit 1
- Related Benefit 2
- Related Benefit 3
- Related Benefit 4
- Related Benefit 5
My identity has been compromised by data breaches, and I worry about protecting the brand-new iPhone I just purchased. Can you help me set the security settings on my device? —Betty K.
First off, Betty, I’m sorry to hear that your identity has been compromised. While it may be of little comfort, you are far from alone. Protecting our digital devices, and especially the data stored on them, is essential.
Start with basic security. Practicing smart digital hygiene goes a lot further than setting up complex passwords that aren’t repeated elsewhere and/or relying on fingerprint sensors, facial recognition or other biometric solutions as digital bouncers that prevent outsiders from gaining access to your device. Of course, those are things that you should be doing.
The same advice applies to two-factor authentication, which provides an extra layer of protection by sending a one-time verification code to a trusted phone number, email address or another device.
You should also be installing the software updates that Apple, Google or an Android manufacturer periodically makes available.
But robust security and privacy — because these often go hand in hand — require even more attention, and it’s true for iPhone and Android users alike.
With that in mind, let me take you on a tour of key settings to review.
Securing an iPhone
Launch Settings and scroll down to Privacy & Security. There’s a lot here, but in general, what you’re deciding on is how much control you are willing to grant specific apps. That is, under what circumstances, if ever, will you let such apps access specific data, know your location and use the phone’s microphone and camera?
To be sure, some apps need access to those things, but not all do, and certainly not under every circumstance, or when you are not actively engaging with them.
At the very top, under Privacy & Security settings, you’ll find Location Services, where you allow apps and services to pinpoint your whereabouts. Suffice it to say, a weather app needs to know where you are to deliver an accurate forecast, just as a Maps app requires knowing your location to provide driving directions.
Enable the Location Services switch if it’s not already on, then scroll down to each app on your device to decide when it can access your location: Always, While Using the App, or Never.
Depending on the app, I often choose the Ask Next Time Or When I Share option. That lets you make the call on a case-by-case basis.
I would also like to point out the Precise Location switch. Turn it on for a rideshare app such as Uber or Lyft so the driver knows the address at which to pick you up. But your weather app can deliver a forecast for your city without needing to know your exact block.
Tracking. The topic of tracking is broad and sometimes controversial. You may be fine, or not, with tracking the location of your family members, a topic I addressed in a previous column. But having companies and advertisers track your online activity is something else entirely.
That’s where the Allow Apps to Request to Track setting comes in, which you can turn on for all apps, or just some. Apple requires app developers to request permission before they can follow you around from app to app or across the web.
Often, the app developer’s motivation is to target the ads they deliver to you, which you may or may not be OK with. But they can also sell your data to third-party data brokers or businesses that harvest consumers’ personal information and attempt to profit from it. Combined with other publicly available information about you on the internet, companies can use the data to construct a profile. I’m not really comfortable with that.
If you decline permission, or at least make apps ask each time, the app cannot access the Advertising Identifier, an alphanumeric string unique to your device.
Other decisions to make
If you scroll down further under Privacy & Security settings, you get to determine which third-party apps can access the apps that are already on your device. For example, if you tap Photos, you can choose whether to grant these outside apps Full Access, Limited Access, or None. Under Limited Access, you can cherry-pick the images to share with such third-party apps.
For example, you can grant access to a social media app, such as Instagram or a photo-editing app like Adobe Lightroom. But again, this is a personal decision you should make on a case-by-case basis.
You can also decide which, if any, third-party apps can use the phone’s camera. Apple shows a list of the apps that have requested that access. To deny the request for the given apps, tap the switch to turn it gray rather than green. If you approve, be aware that photos and videos taken with the camera may contain additional information, including where and when they were taken.
Other apps may request access to Apple Music, your Contacts or the Health app. I recommend carefully reviewing these and other listings based on your level of comfort.
Securing an Android phone
All Android phones are different, and security options vary accordingly. Similar to iPhone, I recommend poring through the various settings in your device’s Security and privacy section.
Let me point out a couple of settings to be mindful of on a Samsung Galaxy, which has the leading market share among Android device makers.
Under the Security and privacy | Account security setting, you will see a yellow icon if you are not signed into both your Samsung account and Google account and the phone determines there’s an issue with one or both of those accounts, such as an outdated password.
Next, go to the App security | App protection setting. It’s an optional built-in feature powered by McAfee that scans for issues whenever you install a new app. Samsung warns that enabling the feature may slow app installations, a potential downside that the pros may outweigh.
Enabling another feature, Auto Blocker, puts the kibosh on apps from unauthorized sources, including those outside the Google Play Store or Galaxy Store. It also blocks “unofficial” software updates, malware suspected in messaging apps, and suspicious commands sent through a USB cable that’s connected to the phone.
As with iPhone, you can also block access to the camera, microphone and your location. Go to Security and privacy | Permissions used in last 24 hours (or 7 days) and tap the right pointing arrow >. Tap any of the listed apps to see which permissions they have. Options under Photos, for example, include Always allow all, Allow limited access or Don’t allow.
To control access to the camera or microphone, tap Security and privacy | Controls and alerts, then toggle the switches next to Camera access or Microphone access. It’s also worth noting the Alert when clipboard accessed switch that, when enabled, warns you when an app accesses text, images or other content that you’ve copied.
I would suggest poking around all the privacy and security settings on your iPhone or Android device to familiarize yourself with the options that can help protect you from trouble and meet your privacy expectations.
Bonus tip: Under worst-case scenarios, choose Lockdown mode
Sadly, no matter how many protections you’ve enabled, you can still be vulnerable to a cyberattack, especially if you work in an at-risk profession, perhaps in government, journalism or a position where you advocate on controversial issues. If you know or suspect you’ve been targeted, enable the Lockdown mode feature on your iPhone. It’s an extreme measure that limits the functionality of certain apps on the handset and blocks others altogether.
For example, in this mode, most message attachment types will be blocked, except for certain images, videos and audio that Apple says may pass through.
Among other restrictions, the phone will not be able to connect to nonsecure Wi-Fi networks, and outdated cellular network service will also be turned off. If you share images, the embedded location data will be excluded. And Apple will block incoming FaceTime calls unless you called the person within the past 30 days.
To turn on the feature, go to Privacy & Security | Lockdown Mode | Turn on Lockdown Mode | then Turn on Lockdown Mode again | Turn On & Restart. Apple lets you exclude an app or website from the most stringent restrictions.
For a rough Android equivalent, search for the Google feature called Advanced Protection.
The key takeaways were created with the assistance of generative AI. An AARP editor reviewed and refined the content for accuracy and clarity.
AARP Membership
Join AARP for only $15 per year with automatic renewal. Get instant access to members-only products and hundreds of benefits, a free second membership, and a subscription to AARP The Magazine.
You Might Also Like
Steps to Try When Important Texts Disappear
Deleted messages linger in Trash or Recently Deleted folders for a limited time
A Guide to Silencing Smartphone Notifications
Adjust sound options and app controls to minimize distractions
Why to Look Inside Your Smartphone’s Settings
You can customize a phone to make it your own