As we pointed out yesterday a lot of people have things to hide sitting in plain view on their smartphones and tablets. This includes intimate videos and pictures of themselves or other things that are likely to bring them to ruin if the material was to “leak” to the tabloids like H-Metro. These leaks might occur if someone were to have unauthorised access to your phone or if your smartphone or tablet was stolen. Today we will take a look at Apps that you might find useful in preventing unauthorised access to the material on your device and or Apps to help recover it when it is stolen.
This is a free App for Android that uses your smartphone’s/tablet’s camera to take pictures of any person who tries to unlock your phone.
This is a free iPhone app that you would find useful if your phone were to get stolen or if you “misplaced it.” The app will allow you use another iOS device such as an iPad to find the missing device and remotely protect your data. The missing device’s location appears on a map and you can lock the device and erase all those naughty pictures and videos before someone calls the tabloids on you. Assuming the phone is still connected to the internet of course: You just have to pray that the data bundles do not run out on you.
This app offers functionality that is similar to the find my iPhone app but it is available for Android devices. It allows you to view the location of the stolen device on on a map and do a GPS track of the phone. It is also possible to do a remote wipe of all the data on the device or even sound an audible alarm on the stolen device to shame the thief.
Is another free Android app that you can use to try and recover your lost phone. It is described as “last resort” and in addition to the functionality offered by Seek MyAndroid it allows for tracking of your lost device using cell towers and can even automatically switch on GPS tracking.
A free Android app that provides privacy for picture and video files by hiding them in individual, password-protected folders.
Another free App that also offers anti virus capabilities as well as acts as an anti-theft Android security application. It scans installed apps and memory card content on demand. Also features a privacy report, which scans and displays access rights and intents of installed apps, as well as anti-theft components that give you remote control via SMS or Web to lock, locate, siren, memory or wipe the device.
This offers similar features to those of Avast but it includes are limited version for iPhones.
Available for: Android, limited version for iPhone
This free Android app automatically moves confidential SMS and call logs from private contacts( “say smallhouse”) into private space and hides the normal track on your phone. The private space is password protected. It also blocks unwanted SMS using keywords specified by the owner quite a handy way of dealing with those people who simply can’t take no for an answer.
Mobile tracker, supports remote deletion of data and folder protection of and antivirus. It is just the same as Avast above but you might prefer this if you are one of those Windows fanboys.
This is a competing program from McAfee it offers the same functionality as Symantec and Avast with the only difference being that this program was named after a millionaire fugitive.
Now go, install and be safe and just so you know nothing in this article shall be construed to mean that cheating or being unfaithful is OK. I am not an ashleyaddison.com fan, I just believe in people’s right to privacy so if you get caught cheating it is all your fault. Also using the said apps does not guarantee that your private data will not get leaked it simply reduces the chance of that happening.
Please feel free to add on any material about privacy that might be useful. I do not have an iOS device so the list is a bit short.
Picture via Gizimodo
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21 comments
looking forward to finger print phone lock inspired by IPhone coming to other phones
HTC One Max already has it!
the htc one max has not been released yet, it supposed to be released on 15 October.
finger print security is easy to fool
http://www.google.co.zw/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=3&cad=rja&sqi=2&ved=0CC4QtwIwAg&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dailymail.co.uk%2Fsciencetech%2Farticle-2429814%2FApples-iPhone-5S-fingerprint-scanner-hacked-just-TWO-days.html&ei=OTZeUrmLMoaRhQeGqYDACw&usg=AFQjCNFR1pdbe8wL3QA4PpE1GI-_9RXOZA&bvm=bv.54176721,d.d2k
do u call this east
– The fingerprint of the iPhone 5S owner was photographed from a glass surface, using 2400 dpi resolution.
The image was cleaned up using photo-editing software, inverted and laser printed with 1200 dpi onto transparent sheet with a thick toner setting.
Hackers then poured pink latex milk or white woodglue into the print pattern created by the toner onto the transparent sheet.
After it dried, the thin latex sheet is lifted from the sheet, breathed on ‘to make it a tiny bit moist’ and pressed onto the sensor to unlock the phone.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2429814/Apples-iPhone-5S-fingerprint-scanner-hacked-just-TWO-days.html#ixzz2iLHRmyQn
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the point is if someone targets you for your phone for specifically for the data it holds, they can and will use this to get into your phone. it took me seconds to memorize this proceedure, and these are all materials i have readily at ,my disposal, how about a thief then?
Among phone finders another app worthy of mention is Android Lost. You can use it to remotely locate or control your phone including such functions as locking, erasing data, sending messages, event triggered alerts and capturing camera images.
Forgot to mention you don’t need to have installed it prior to losing your phone!
That’s would give the app a definite advantage over rivals.
Good Article. however i feel you left out one very commendable product in the market – Kaspersky. Check it out http://support.kaspersky.com/7747 & http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/reviews/security/3351232/kaspersky-mobile-security-lite-review/
Sure missed it. It looks like a good product.
And how did you miss Prey Project…?
From experience of having my phones stolen i have come realise that the greatest security weapon in protecting your device is making sure that you avoid losing it. Please do not walk at night especially in dark places, you will get mugged and thiefs are aware of all those security features on your phone and so dont bank on ever recovering your phone using all those features because that failed to work on about three phones that were stolen from me. The first line of defence remains to keep your phone safe, do not get into situations where you can be overpowered and have your phone taken by force.
For droids like me you can also try gallery vault, it hides pics and videos on your device. If the app is uninstalled it goes away with the content and if reinstalled you will find your previous data there as well.
IF you have any Auto Backups (Google+, DropBox… etc), you also have to keep your account safe/secure.
For example if someone gets your google account, they get access to images/videos/docs that you may have saved in g+,docs, youtube.
So, always logout when using a publicly accessible device (cafe, work).
For data backup, that would be a good idea. Plus enabling 2 step verification on your Google account. But security of data on phone, i would suggest using the encryption function on the Android phone on your memory card. if someone decides to steal it, they will not be able to get your, ummm, home movies 🙂
You should also take a look at another app called VAULT. its for the Android phones. Very good at hiding photos, sms, call records, contact list and many more. If someone tries to log in with a fake password it will take a picture and inform u…. Pretty good for hiding those not so public photos and secret contacts…. A favorite for PLAYERS… lol
In Addition to security I would like to add LockItTight as a anti theft application for both Android and windows based Laptops. It helps securing your device.
Anti theft ?? how securing??
LockItTight let you precisely location and monitor your computers through LockItTight.com. After you sign up the free service on LockItTight.com and install the client software on your computer, it will consistently report its location, screen and webcam shots, key and clipboard logs to LockItTight.com.
You can access the reports from any computer. In case your
computer was lost or stolen, you will be able to find where it is, who
is using it and how. With all these information, the chance of
retrieving your lost computer is greatly increased.
interesting I didnt know anything like this exist worth a try it seems…