7 Best Apps to Protect Your Smartphone From Cybercriminals

Android and iOS are the largest mobile operating system platforms in the world. Android is already at 2.5 billion users and increasing. It gives criminals plenty of incentive to target smartphones. To further compound the issue, researchers at Cambridge have found that 87% of Android devices aren’t secure due to running older versions of Android. And iOS is not without flaws either.

One of the best things smartphone owners can do for their devices is to update to the latest version of OS. The second best thing is to download security-oriented apps that can protect their devices. Check out these seven apps that will keep your data safe from the most common cyber-attacks out there.

1. AppLock

Phones come with built-in locks, but AppLock protects individual apps. Criminals might be able to circumvent built-in locks and get into the phone. AppLock will keep any locked apps out of their reach.

You can lock any app, including those that come with the native Android system, with AppLock. It also has a handy feature that can hide any images or videos in the smartphone’s gallery. One can only view them after entering the correct pin.

Platforms: Android
Price: Free & Paid

2. NordVPN

VPN downloads for mobile devices are increasing thanks to the many threats highlighted in the news as of late. VPN service protects your internet connection by encrypting it. It sends the connection through a secure server which results in a scrambled jumble of data that hackers can’t make sense of. Thus, no way for hackers to steal any messages, credentials or files in the transfer.

A VPN is also a must-have app to use for anyone who likes to connect to public WiFi networks. Make sure to download a reputable VPN that has fast servers and a no-logs policy. NordVPN is one of such options.

Platform: iOS / Android
Price: Paid

3. Kaspersky Antivirus and Security

Some antivirus apps can slow the phone down and drain the battery life due to them always running in the background. Kaspersky stays active and on top of threat protection as well. But it’s built by security experts that know what they’re doing.

The antivirus app has powerful protection services against viruses and malware. At the same time, Kaspersky also doesn’t eat up as much battery life or phone processing power as many of other similar apps out there.

Platforms: Android
Price: Free & Paid Features

4. ChatSecure

ChatSecure is a free, open-source messaging app that uses end-to-end encryption to protect users’ messages. It’s also possible to integrate it with other messaging platforms like Adium.

WhatsApp (one of the most popular messenger apps currently in existence) does use end-to-end encryption. But it’s also owned by Facebook, and everyone knows they don’t exactly have a stellar reputation for protecting people’s privacy.

Platforms: iOS
Price: Free, accepts donations.

5. PwSafe

If there’s one thing that cybercriminals love, then it’s stealing people’s passwords. Data breaches tend to be the biggest threat. It’s also something that Android owners have no control over, unfortunately. But they aren’t the only security problem. Criminals have a host of ways to get at login information.

It’s impossible to protect every account from data breaches. But it is vital to make sure other accounts don’t get compromised as well. It means not reusing any passwords across more than one account, which 2 out of 3 people still tend to do.

Of course, the problem stems from how many passwords people have to remember. That’s where password managers like PwSafe come in. It stores every password in its vault and generates new unique passwords.

Platforms: Android / iOS
Price: Free

6. Norton Security and Antivirus

Norton provides the leading security software solutions out there. It’s a popular option among Android users and has over 1.4 million downloads. This antivirus app scans for malware and spyware, as well as unsecured WiFi connections, and sends a warning upon discovering something suspicious.

Many antivirus apps do the bare minimum, but Norton comes with added extras, like a search engine that flags unsafe search results. It can also help in a pinch when a smartphone gets stolen by saving its last known location and taking and sending photos.

Platforms: Android / iOS
Price: Free & Paid Features

7. Resilio Sync

Many people consider cloud storage safe, even though breaches have occurred in the past. They want to use the cloud, but they don’t know whom to trust. Which is why many opt to set up their own storage instead. Apps like Resilio Sync help to do just that. With this software, anyone can set up their cloud storage and share files between their computers and mobile devices. It’s like having Dropbox but knowing where the files are at all times.

Platform: Android / iOS
Price: Free & $59.99-$99.99 (once-off payment)

Conclusion

Both Android and iOS have a host of fantastic security apps to choose from. And it’s not only antivirus apps that keep your phone secure. This list offers some good options that every smartphone owner should take a look at if they want to take control of their own security.