In the age of high technology, we are all equipped with more and more computer systems. Despite the many benefits they bring to our way of life, these technologies undeniably present vulnerabilities that we must consider protecting ourselves against.

Not so long ago, Google fixed a flaw in the system that made 99% of Android devices vulnerable! The problem is present, and must be considered.

In this file, you will be given as many explanations as possible about the threats that present a danger to your system, before giving you the effective steps to take to secure your Android smartphone or tablet, and protect yourself from the vulnerabilities of the web.

Preamble on security

Before doing anything, we must first be aware of the context in which we find ourselves (in security, I mean). You are probably all aware of viruses on Android, moreover a study by Kapersky and INTERPOL highlighted this problem, but it is far too often an abuse of language to evoke all the vulnerabilities in computing, and more precisely on the Web.

If we talk about “viruses”, we are also referring to trojans, malware, worms and even social engineering in attempts to corrupt and/or steal confidential information. We will hardly have the opportunity to go into detail and will choose to target Android systems and make this document accessible to everyone.

But don't worry, this file is there to deal with as many points as possible and give you all the tools in hand to protect you from the dangers. No one can assure you of absolute and 100% safe security, but at least you will have taken the trouble to educate yourself, and ideally, to take action.

If you are viewing this page, you have taken the first step towards security. Below, we'll take a tour of the main factors to watch out for on your mobile devices.

1. Phone calls

This is a point that many unfortunately omit, but a smartphone is first and foremost a phone. Also, a large majority of current users of the Android system are people of a certain age who use their smartphone mainly to make calls.

Therefore, the risks exist. The person receives a call from a number they do not know, or from a hidden number. Difficult to identify what is behind this.

You have two choices if you find yourself in this situation:

2. Internet browsing

In addition to telephony, our smartphones and tablets have become real technological gems and obviously allow you to browse the Internet. In addition to the internet browser embedded on Android, it is possible to download alternatives such as Chrome, Opera or Firefox to name a few.

In all cases, they store and retain data about you: search history, sites visited, associated accounts and passwords (social networks for example). To avoid as many risks as possible, and protect your privacy, consider adopting a few actions that will improve your daily life:

To do this, why not use the Clean Master application which does things very well and will allow you to clean your tracks quickly.

To download Clean Master it's here:

For those who only use the default Android browser, in the latter, press the menu button and then “Settings”. From the list, choose “Privacy and security”. Finally, select the options to erase what you want:

The handling could vary according to your terminal or the version of your system, but remains similar from one case to another.

Another point to mention: be careful what you download from the web! Especially if you just found an .apk file of an app on a site. Nothing guarantees the reliability of the file and nothing tells you that it will not represent a danger once stored on your smartphone or tablet.

A famous quote that originated with developers or geeks (depending on your choice) can be adapted to our mobile devices and serve as a warning:

To think about.

3. Bank accounts and transactions

Even more than on a PC or Mac, you have to be careful when you consult your bank information. To do this, prefer above all to go through an application belonging to your bank! It is obvious that paid or third-party applications are to be avoided absolutely.

Here is a (non-exhaustive) set of these safe and usable applications:

To buy online, I will tell you the same thing. Indeed, many online stores have their own equivalent application, such as those below:

But in any case, it's best to check your balance, make transfers or go shopping with your computer, if you don't have the possibility or the desire to travel.

4. Downloading applications from the Play Store

If you make transactions on your smartphone or tablet, you will no doubt be led to buy applications (or simply download free ones) from the online store of Google.

Whether you pay or not, the applications you purchase will claim access rights on your device. For some, you will see that they only consult what they need. Others, on the other hand, do not hesitate to read or even write data to your device.

Nevertheless remember a golden rule when you download applications: always check the access requested, even from a recognized brand or one deemed reliable! Because it is often also these applications that hide their intentions, believing that no one will read the “warnings” before accepting.

Some apps ask for permissions they don't need to work optimally. Note that since the arrival of Android 6.0 Marshmallow, you can authorize and revoke the permissions of each application individually, it is essential to peel each permission requested by the applications with a magnifying glass.

5. Restrict access to your personal data

When you are victims of malware, most of the time, it is your personal data that is targeted. Photos, contacts, SMS, passwords, some malware can give hackers full access to your Android device so, if in the worst case, you were to get infected. Remember to have the right reflexes.

Avoid password managers

One of the strategies for protecting your data is to store as little as possible on your smartphone as well as in cloud services. Not that password managers should be avoided. However, this is probably not the safest solution. One of the most famous, Lastpass was hacked. Fortunately, the encrypted data had not been recovered by the hackers, but this was the case for the emails and password clues.

Beware of public Wifi

If you are used to surfing on public Wifi networks, remember to secure your connection. We do not necessarily think about it, however, many attacks are carried out in this way for the simple reason that it is easier for a hacker to hack a smartphone connected to the same network as him. For this, an application like Wifi Protector VPN will do the trick. In addition, it will allow you to surf completely anonymously and not to be tracked by advertisers. Also, consider turning off WiFi when you don't need it.

6. Choose secure passwords

A study conducted on all European users revealed that it was the French who chose the least secure passwords. However, it is not difficult to find a password that no one will be able to guess. All you need to do is adopt a few best practices.

From there, you can consider your password secure. But be careful, having a safe password is not enough, you will also have to change it often just in case, but also avoid using the same one from one service to another. Do not use the same password for Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, for example, or avoid using the password for your banking application for other services.

7. Antiviruses, firewalls and anti-malware

I risk raising debates, but I advise you not to use Android antivirus or anti-malware! First, a good antivirus (which actually has other features) is a paid antivirus. But this often means that they request permissions en masse and have full access to your personal data.

However, such a program should not need to read your SMS (and even less to modify them), or even to call in your place at the risk of having surprises on your next bill.

To illustrate my point, I chose one of the antiviruses recommended by many Android users, namely the Avast antivirus:

If you see some disturbing rights claims, you're not wrong. There is no possible control over these applications. And by “scaring” users, antivirus vendors take advantage of this to consult and recover your confidential data.

To imagine the worst, an antivirus has advanced access to your system. If a hacker manages to find and exploit a flaw in the application, he can use an antivirus to infect your device with viruses. Moreover, such an application should in no case hold write rights on the system.

We'll cover one last point before we conclude: firewalls. Already, by obtaining an application of its kind, you will quickly find that it claims very few rights, once again, the bare minimum necessary to carry out its mission.

A firewall is used to monitor internet traffic, what is coming in and what is going out. On the Android system, this allows you to have precise monitoring for each of your applications and control their behavior. If I can recommend one, it's Droidwall, which is really very effective. Please note that you must have a rooted smartphone.

Conclusion

We have come to the end of this file. I hope that it will have taught you certain things, in which case it will have allowed you to remember certain practices and habits to adopt.

Never forget that the first thing that puts you in danger on the web is you. Arm yourself with caution, find out what you are doing and keep the tips in this file in the back of your mind.

For more security, you can also consult our top password manager applications.

If you have any questions about the Android system, or security in general, ask them in the comments and I'll be happy to answer them.

Android viruses: how to detect, protect and get rid of them?

The number of viruses and malware on Android doubled in 2016. Here are our tips for protecting against, detecting and getting rid of them.