8 simple ways to protect your smartphone from hackers

Keep your device secure with these easy-to-follow steps.

- MARSHALL GUNNELL

eing the victim of phone hacking is a nightmare. The worst case of phone hacking is that the threat actor gains access to your online accounts, such as your social media, email, online shopping accounts, or worse, your banking information. This would force you to go through the headache of changing a ton of passwords (fave.co/3yMsyTW), having to lock your credit (fave.co/3019Eck), contacting your bank and online shopping vendors (Amazon, eBay, and so on), and trying to pinpoint everything else the hacker had access to (fave.co/30ny59r).

It's always better to be proactive instead of reactive. Don't wait until you get hacked to care about your privacy and security. Take steps to protect yourself now.

Here are eight simple precautions you can take to remain safe from would-be hackers.

1. USE A PASSCODE LOCK OR FACE OR TOUCH ID

When people think of getting hacked, the first thing that comes to mind is someone in a remote location executing a bunch of code to gain access to your device. This may sometimes be true, but the reality can sometimes be much more boring than that. Hacking simply means that someone gains unauthorized access to data on your device. This means if someone gets physical access to your phone and accesses your data without your consent, then by definition you have been hacked.

Your mobile device’s first line of defense is your passcode lock or face or touch ID. While this technology isn’t 100 percent foolproof, having a password or other authentication measure enabled will certainly keep a large percentage of people out if they somehow get a hold of your phone. While it may seem like a minor inconvenience to add a lock on your phone, it’s nothing compared to the inconvenience of being hacked.

2. FREQUENTLY BACK UP YOUR PHONE