How to remove a hacker from my iPhone?
If we were to ask how secure the average iOS user felt their device was, we are sure to have some numbers in the high range. While the Apple mobile operating system is a robust one, it is not without its flaws. Follow the below steps to know how to secure your iPhone from hackers?
This guide will tell you how you can secure your iPhone or iPad from hackers? If you care about the iPhone security and data privacy then follow the below guide to know the most important ways to increase your iPhone safety and keep it away from the hackers. We will tell you the tested iPhone security tips and recommended anti hacking apps and softwares to keep the hackers at bay. In this guide you will also learn how to remove a hacker from your iPhone or iPad by using iOS security features and anti hacking tips?
It is very well known that Apple iOS is one of the most secure Mobile Operating systems, but there are some ways that a hacker can use to get into your Phone. So, in order to avoid those loopholes in the iOS security and for the sake of your private data and sensitive information like Passwords, Credit cards and other information, We will provide you with the essential tips.
Can iPhone get viruses? And, if yes, What is the best antivirus for iPhone and best Mac antivirus protection.
You don’t have to take our word for it, though. Some of the recent iOS bugs, flaws, and threats in this year alone include: How to secure your iPhone from hackers (iPhone security and Protection Tips)
The Mail App Bug
Apple has an email service provider that they ship with their iPhone and iPad devices. This app was recently found to contain an exploit that allowed sophisticated hackers to take complete control of the user’s devices.
The intriguing part about this exploit was that users do not have to interact with the malware before it starts working. In other words, the malware can be sent to your unit, activated and caused to take control of your device – and you would not have done anything wrong for that to happen.
The Communications Limits Bug
With an update from Apple came a feature that allowed parents to limit who their kids can talk to (text, facetime, etc.) online. As nice as that sounds, it was disheartening to find out that it did not work at the time. Not only did it not work, but it also allowed the kids to connect and talk to total strangers not even on their contact list. That is very ironic – defeating the main purpose of the function by a landslide.
Third-Party Keyboard Bug
Apple devices come with a default keyboard installed by the company. Users might want to get more out of their devices and install third party options like SwiftKey, though. Apple noted that these keyboards should need to ask for access before they can interact with other apps and parts of your phone.
However, an exploit is allowing such keyboards to bypass the asking stage, just gaining access to your data directly. There are more, but you get the story already. While Apple runs a tight ship, there is nothing like a perfectly safe and secure OS. Not what comes out of the box anyway. Likewise, there are some security issues not specific to iOS but very grave when used to launch attacks too.
How to secure your iPhone from hackers (iPhone security and Protection Tips)
That is why users should take matters into their own hands in some instances. Here’s how to take back a stronger and more robust security profile than before:
1 Check App Permissions
The settings dashboard gives insight into every app on the iPhone and what they have access to. Users are advised to frequently visit this area periodically to check what their apps are seeing.
You should always choose the app permissions consciously. With the latest iOS update Apple has made it even more difficult for the hackers which try to get access to your Phone’s data using the app permissions. You can now select between Allow continuous location access while you’re using the app, Allow once and Don’t allow. This way you will have more control over who is allowed to access your location.
- Keep location permission to don’t allow or only allow while using the app.
- Some apps also ask for the bluetooth access information. Check the apps trustworthiness and guidelines before allowing it to access your bluetooth settings.
- Some apps like facebook, whatsapp, and other social sites ask for camera, microphone, contacts, etc permissions to use the app. You can always disable them from the settings according to your needs.
- In the past apps could have tracked your Wi-Fi networks but in iOS 13 this feature is off by default.
- Apple has also restricted the Notes app to the third-party apps, which is also good for security of the phone.
So, update your iPhone or iPad to iOS 13 to make your iPhone and iPad more secure and keep the hackers from out of your iOS device. We know that, in order to use social or VoIP apps you may have to give certain access to the apps But, you must know that you can always revoke the apps access by heading to Settings > Privacy, and then selecting the b you’d like to revoke and then toggle the applicationoff.
Make sure to restrict your apps to just what they need and ignore any bogus requests into parts of your data where they have no business being. Now follow the second step to know how to secure your iPhone from hackers?
2 Install an Antivirus
The zero-click email app vulnerability is one thing, but there is a lot more malware out there. Installing a decent antivirus/ anti malware for your iOS device keeps you safe against instances of such malware.
Since users cannot always catch all viruses themselves, it makes sense to have an automated system to watch over their shoulders at all times.
3 Avoid Public Wi-Fi
These networks are free to use, so why not? Most often than not, you are paying for this supposed freebie with your data. In the wrong hands, that data can be weaponized against you in ways you had no idea.
Your internet data stream could also be used to hack into your online accounts. That, and we have not explored the possibility of having your data provide a backdoor into your iOS device, leaking sensitive details to hackers, etc.
4 Install a VPN
Network security is very important for iOS users. Especially for those who use public Wi-Fi networks a lot, the easiest way to secure your device is to download a VPN on your mobile. Even on personal connections, VPNs provide a secure layer of encryption that prevents data snooping, conversation hijacking, and man-in-the-middle attacks, among others.
5 Update your Apps
When bugs are reported in apps, like the cases above, the developer gets them fixed by sending out updates to such apps. It is, thus, in your best interest to download and install these updates as soon as they come your way.
Granted, updates will sometimes come to boost the aesthetic appeal of apps. Those kinds of updates are, however, far lesser than the ones there to squash the bugs.
6 Update device firmware
Apple sends out firmware updates to fix issues in its official apps. Speaking of official apps, we have the likes of the Mail app and the Limited Communications functionality on the device.
Recently, there has been a barrage of iOS 13 updates rolled out to fix different issues. Not getting these updates leaves your device vulnerable to attacks from those exploits.
To update to the latest version of iOS, unlock your iOS device and Go to> Settings and tap General then Software Update. If your device is not up to date you will see a prompt asking you to download and install the current version of iOS. You may have to enter the passcode to install the new Update.
At the time of writing this article the current version of iOS is iOS 13.6 and iPadOS 13.6. You can always check the latest iOS version available to download on the apple website.
7 Activate Find My iPhone Feature
Find My iPhone is one of the best apps for tracking your lost or stolen iPhone. It is also your best bet against hackers or thieves for protecting your iOS device data.
If Find My iPhone is installed and activated on your iPad or iPhone then you can locate your lost or stolen iphone via the web on a Mac or PC. You can also lock the iPhone and remove the data from it so that the thief or a hacker does not have any access to it whatsoever. The erased and locked iPhone or iPad would be a brick for that hacker. So make sure that you have installed and activated the “Find My iPhone” app on your iOS device. It is one of the best apps to protect iPhone from hackers and save your private data of any misuse.
You can turn on Find My iPhone on your iPhone or iPad by following these steps:
- Unlock your device and Go to settings.
- Tap on your name or picture which you can see at the top of the display.
- Now Go to > iCloud.
- Scroll down and tap on Find My iPhone.
- Now Toggle on the Find My iPhone feature if it is not already enabled.
You can also access your iPhone or iPad location even if it is offline using the new iOS 13 feature. The new offline location feature uses the Bluetooth technology to detect the nearby Bluetooth beacons thus making life harder for hackers and thieves.
You can enable the remotely wipe an iPhone feature on Find My iPhone, by following these steps:
- Open the Find My app or iCloud website
- Enter your credentials.
- Select Devices from the list.
- Select Your iOS device.
- Now tap on Erase this iPhone or iPad.
- Now, whenever it connects to any internet connection, the iPhone will automatically start the erasing process.
You may not be able to recover the iOS device from hackers or thieves but you will be relieved to know that your personal data and financial credentials are safe and secure.
8 Create a longer passcode
Longer passwords are more secure and are hard to brute force. A four-digit passcode is pretty easy to crack, a good cracking tool Like GrayKey would easily crack a 4-digit passcode within hours. And, a six-digit is also not that safe either. Giving you just a few days of security until it gets cracked with an advanced and sophisticated brute force tool.
So, to make your iPhone or iPad secure you must create a longer passcode. The recommended length of the passcode according to different security experts is about 10 digits, with the mix of alphabets, numbers and special characters. All these mixed alphanumeric combinations make the task of a brute-force software much more harder.
Here, are some of the things that you should do to protect your phone:
- Set a long passcode: More than six digits at least with the alphanumeric combinations. Or,
- A 10 digit alphanumeric passcode (Could take more than 10 years to unlock your device using the brute-force technique.)
Now if you are asking that, Are iPhones secure? Then you must know that Apple does it’s absolute best to secure your iPhone using the various privacy and security updates. It’s up to you how you can do your part and keep your data secure by using different security features. Like the most basic feature: Passcode. If you can set a long alphanumeric passcode on your iPhone or iPad it helps in protecting your iPhone from hackers. It doesn’t matter if you have a iPhone 6, iPhone 7, iPhone 8, iPhone X, iPhone 11 or iPhone SE. You just have to choose a longer passcode to secure your iPhone or iPad.
9 Don’t use same passwords
Most of the people use the same passwords for websites and apps. They just choose a simple password that can be remembered easily and save it in the Autofill form. This does make their life easy when signing in on many different websites but makes it too easy for a hacker to control and thus hack the Mac or iPhone.
You can also prevent your iPhone from being hacked by using the default Safari password generator. Or, you can also use the 1Password manager for full autonomy.
We recommend our users to create different passwords for different websites. And, if you are having trouble with so many passwords then you can use a password generator tool like 1Password or you can also use the default password generator tool in Safari, which is quite good and safe.
If you are using the updated version of Safari browser then you can go to Safari > Preferences > Passwords, and can look for any duplicate passwords. You will see a warning sign in front of the duplicate password. And, if you want to change the duplicate password, just click on the “Warning triangle” and go to the website to change the password.
10 Watch for fake apps
We all know that the iOS store app submission is very strict. You will be amazed to know that almost 40 percent of all that get submitted for approval are declined. That’s a huge number and from that you can get an idea of how stringent Apple App store guidelines are. But let’s do not forget that the fake apps market is growing day by day. Hackers are using the original apps as a disguise for the fake ones to trick the tech novice people. Using the fake apps they track you, get hold of your private data and can even restrict you out of your mobile device. You can also read how to delete apps from iOS 13.
So, in order to keep hackers out of your iPhone, you must always check the authenticity of the app. You must check the reviews and the app developer information. This way you can at least rule out this rapidly growing iPhone security risk and make your iphone more secure.
11 Enable two-factor authentication (2FA)
The two-factor authentication is definitely the one of the best anti iPhone hacking features that one can use to stop someone from hacking your iPhone. It is a built-in feature on your iOS devices that can be used with your iCloud to protect it from any security breaches. This is the easiest way to increase the security on your iPhone or iPad. It is an extra layer of security for your Apple ID. You can learn about this security feature more on Apple’s website. Using this app feature you can block hackers on iPhone and can even clean your iPhone before the hackers try to use it. A must use recommended Apple iPhone security feature.
12 Protect your SIM
Create a PIN for your iPhone SIM. It will restrict the use of SIM just to your iPhone. This will make it harder for the thief or the hacker to use the “One time password” technique to access your iPhone details. It is a very handy technique and is even recommended by senior Cyber Security experts.
13 Wipe and reset iOS device before selling
You must always erase and delete all of the iPhone’s content before selling your device. You should also remove your iOS device from the Apple account before you hand it over to someone. Before deleting the content of your iPhone or iPad, you can take a backup of your device, unpair it from the Apple watch and sign out of every single Apple service.
You can go to > Settings > General > Reset and then tap on “erase all content and settings.” It will reset your iPhone or iPad device to factory settings.
14. Don’t jailbreak your iPhone or sideload apps
Jailbreaking your iPhone or iPad nowadays is a norm for geek users and more people are doing it. Our suggestion, avoid it at any cost, unless you are testing an app or using it just for fun. If you really need jailbreaking then you can just create a new Apple ID, just for the sake of jailbreaking your iPhone and don’t use it for daily activities. You should also refrain from saving any personal or financial information on it. This is the best way to protect the iPhone from any phishing scam.
15. Use biometric authentication
In general, most cyber security experts suggest using two different authentications to strengthen the security of your iPhone. The new biometric authentication system on the iPhone is more secure than ever. According to Apple, there is a 1 in 50,000 chance that someone else’s fingerprint will falsely unlock your iPhone and a 1 in 1,000,000 chance that someone else’s face will do it. So, everyone must use some form of biometric authentication on their mobile device.
#16: Enable BRUTE-FORCE Security feature
Every iPhone and iPad has a built-in brute-force protection to protect your device data from hackers. It cleans the iPhone and erases all the data from iOS devices, whenever a hacker tries to access your iPhone. If the hacker tries too many times using a brute force attack, your iPhone will automatically delete your data on the 10th failed attempt.
You can enable the brute-force security feature:
Go to Settings > Face ID & Passcode and then scroll down to Erase Data.
17 REDUCE THE LOCK SCREEN TIMEOUT
Shorter the lock screen timeout, faster your iPhone will require the passcode or biometric authentication. This makes it more difficult for a hacker to guess the iOS device passcode. The other benefit of lower screen timeout is that it saves the battery of your iPhone. The recommended screen lockout time for the iPhone or iPad we suggest is between 30 seconds to 1 minute.
You can change the auto screen lock time: Settings > Display & Brightness > Auto-Lock.
18 PASSWORD AUTOFILL AND THIRD-PARTY PASSWORD MANAGERS
Dedicated password managers are a must nowadays. They are a lifesaver and are hassle free. You can easily create and save passwords for as many websites you want. Password savers like 1Password and default Safari password saver are one of the best password managers available on the market now. All of these password managers use standard password creation practices that are highly secure and provide the utmost protection, by recommending strong passwords.
For iPhone Safari Users, you can control your passwords from Settings > Passwords & Accounts > AutoFill Passwords.
Final Words
It is always better to be safer than sorry. You can protect your data and device better now rather than wait to recover from a breach. All the above techniques give you the full hacker protection for iPhone and iPad. What would you rather do?
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