People know about viruses when it comes to computers. Some people online will create websites that attempt to place a virus on your computer when you visit it. There are many kinds of viruses that you can come across online, but they usually targeted computers.
As time goes on, more people use their phones to access the internet. Since hackers need to create viruses that attack certain platforms, more hackers seek to get their viruses onto phones. With this in mind, you need to consider potential malware that could get on your phone and how to fight against it.
Common Mobile Viruses
Hackers continue to develop viruses so that they can attack phone users. You could face common phone viruses, so we will talk about some of them that you should know about and try to avoid.
Trojan viruses seek to sneak into your device and to destroy it from the inside. It gets its name from the Trojan horse strategy used in war. You also have redirect viruses. When you try to search for something on your phone, the virus redirects you to a website that gives ad revenue to the hacker.
Many hackers will use phishing viruses. These viruses go through your phone and try to find personal information, such as banking information, in an attempt to steal from you. This one sticks out because it targets your personal life instead of just your phone or your searching capabilities.
More viruses exist, but these ones stick out as some of the most common viruses you will come across on your phone. Since you don’t want these issues to plague your phone, keep reading to see how these viruses infect your device and what you can do to prevent such viruses.
How You Get Viruses
Hackers use two common ways to infect your phone.
- Attempting an attack through a website.
- Tricking you into downloading the virus.
Many viruses take a more direct approach. When you visit their website, it attempts to download itself onto your computer without permission. Visiting a website without proper protection could cause the virus to successfully infect your computer. This could have immediate consequences or cause you problems later on.
Some viruses will attempt to trick you into downloading them. Hackers do this by having it appear as a legitimate program so that you trust it. It could also try and use scare-ware, which means that a pop-up appears telling you that you need to download something to avoid a virus. However, that download puts the virus on your phone.
By keeping these key points in mind, you can avoid viruses on the internet and help to protect your phone. To further protect you, keep these tips in mind so that you can know how to create an effective defense for viruses.
Get Virus Protection
First, you should get virus protection on your phone. You can find free and paid for virus protection services so that you can increase your security. These will alert you when a virus attempts to get into your phone and it will give you pop-up warnings about suspicious websites and activities.
To add to this, virus protection also includes scanning your phone. This means that the program will go through your phone and search for any viruses. If it finds anything, it will attempt to remove the viruses from your phone. Virus protection works great as an extra wall of security to help prevent virus infections.
Avoid Questionable Websites
Make sure to avoid any websites with questionable content. This means that you shouldn’t click on links that you don’t trust and that you should be wary of things that people send you online. Make sure that you know where the link goes or that you have virus protection that will inform you if the site could be dangerous.
Keep in mind that this could include friends on social media accounts. Your friends may get their social media accounts hacked and send you questionable links through an instant message. Make sure to not click on anything you don’t trust, including links from friends, because you don’t know if your friend’s account was hacked.
Only Download What You Trust
You can download many programs, apps, and other files onto your phone. However, some hackers will make files look safe, but they actually pose a danger to you and your phone. Make sure that you only download files that you trust, meaning that it comes from a reliable source.
You can also download apps to scan files before you download them. This allows a program to scan the file to see if there are any viruses on it. This may not work perfectly, but it should help you to keep your phone safe. Make sure that you always know what you download to your phone to avoid any potential viruses.
Backup Your Phone
A virus may slip through the cracks without you realizing it. If this happens, then you could always make a backup to your phone ahead of time. This means that you save your data on a separate device, such as a laptop so that you can completely clear your phone and restore it to a previous state.
Keep in mind that you need to backup your phone ahead of time. If you don’t, then you won’t be able to restore it to that previous point. You can use different programs and devices to back up your files for your phone, so make sure to pick the one that works for you and that you trust.
Final Points
Yes, viruses exist and some of them attack phones. Some hackers know everything about the latest Android 10 news and will adjust their viruses to attack those devices. However, despite this knowledge, you can include safety measures for your phone to keep it safe. Make sure to apply these tips so that they can help you to avoid viruses and save your data.
