How to Tell If Your Phone Is Hacked: Valuable Recommendations
The phone has long been an integral part of everyone’s life. Without this device, it is difficult to imagine the existence of modern society. It provides mobile communication around the world, allows to perform financial transactions, store important information, and work with many applications. But with the development of technological progress, the capabilities of fraudsters have improved, and cybercrime has become widespread.
Cybercrime is a problem that is growing every year: millions of phones are hacked regularly, and the first signs of such a hack are often difficult to recognize. Fraudsters can hack for entertainment to gain access to personal photos, phone conversations, correspondence, etc. Some attackers use this information for further blackmail in order to extort money. More professional fraudsters can withdraw money from a bank or mobile account through special applications.
Regardless of the purpose of hacking the phone, the owners of the device must know how to tell if the phone is hacked, recognize the signs of hacking in time, and take appropriate measures. We will tell you about it in more detail below.
10 Common Signs that Your Phone Is Hacked
The main signs of a hacked phone are listed below. If you really want to understand how to tell if your phone is hacked, you should study them carefully:
- The main rule of protection is to block the possibility of applications from unknown sources reaching your device. This can be easily done if you open the settings and go to the “Security” section. It is recommended to download applications only from well-known and reliable sites (for example, the Google Play Store);
- If it’s too late and you realize that your device is likely hacked, take a look at your mobile phone bill. Very often, malicious applications send expensive SMS or make invisible calls to unknown numbers: large sums can be charged from your number for such calls. To avoid this, block access to third-party content providers using your mobile operator;
- Control the data usage of your applications. If in the settings of the section “Mobile applications” or “Data usage,” you find applications that consume a lot of data for no apparent reason, you should be alerted. Perhaps this data is passed on to hackers;
- Also, check your bank accounts and email, which are linked to your phone. If you find unauthorized access or unusual transactions, change the passwords for all accounts. If you are in doubt about something, then you should even block bank accounts;
- Serious performance degradation can also be a sign of a hack. Malicious programs often run invisibly in the background, but at the same time, they significantly consume the overall performance of the phone;
- As was already mentioned above, malware affects performance. This also applies to the battery. If it suddenly starts to discharge much faster or starts to get very hot, your phone may be infected with a virus;
- Even when making calls on the phone, you may find that you have been hacked – an alarming sign can be frequent disconnection for no apparent reason, as well as strange noises on the line;
- If you find applications on your phone that you have not installed, this may also point to a hack. Often, adware or other malicious applications can be downloaded to the phone without the owner’s knowledge;
- Do you find that many websites suddenly look completely different? This is another sign of a virus infection that interferes with the exchange of data between the web page servers and your phone;
- But, probably, pop-ups are the most obvious sign of a virus infection or a hack. Be careful if windows suddenly open and they have no explicit relation to a particular and reliable application.
Ways to Protect Your Phone from Hacking
Installing a graphic key or using a fingerprint sensor does not guarantee complete protection for your device. Experienced hackers will have no difficulty cracking a password on a smartphone.
To ensure the safety of your device, you must carefully monitor all actions taken. First of all, you need to use only official applications and constantly install OS updates.
You should not use automatic login to social networks and other accounts. Constantly entering the password will take some time but will significantly increase the security of your data. You also need to disable the function of involuntary connection to the wireless Internet.
Attackers can name their network identically to any public network and can very easily connect to your device.
Taking into account all the above, it is necessary to determine the main ways to protect your phone from hacking:
- Download and install applications from official sources;
- Create strong and different passwords for accounts;
- Leave the profile regularly;
- Change passwords regularly;
- Constantly update software;
- Disable geolocation and automatic Wi-Fi connection for applications;
- Install an effective antivirus.
Following simple rules will help protect your mobile device from a hack and keep your data and information safe.
Preventive Actions to Protect Your Phone from Hacking
In order that you do not have to look for urgent solutions to the problem of protecting your phone from hackers, it is recommended that you pay attention to preventive measures. The following steps will help you protect your phone from hacker attacks:
- Turn off Bluetooth on your phone when you are not using it. This will make it difficult for hackers to access your mobile phone;
- Have you installed the latest software updates? Update your applications to the latest version regularly;
- Do not open phishing messages or messages that seem strange to you;
- Block access for third-party content providers to avoid hidden subscriptions.
So, in this review, we told you how to tell if your phone is hacked and what to do if a problem is identified. Try to heed our valuable recommendations and protect your device in advance.
