6 privacy apps for iOS and Android you should download now - Mashable

6 privacy apps for iOS and Android you should download now - Mashable
5 Signs of a Smartphone Hack (and How to Protect Yourself) - Entrepreneur
Signal now offering encrypted group video calls in iOS app - 9to5Mac
How to Enable Offline Finding on Your Galaxy So You Can Locate Your Phone in Airplane Mode - Gadget Hacks

Posted: 18 Dec 2020 03:00 AM PST

In case there were any lingering doubts, 2020 swooped in hard to remind us all that life is now mediated through devices. The ongoing pandemic, the murder of George Floyd and resultant Black Lives Matters protests, and the still-in-progress attempt to overturn the will of the American people: We've navigated these public health and political upheavals, with varying degrees of success, through screens.

But simply because we're more dependent on phones now than in years past doesn't mean the contents of that digital-forward life is anyone's business besides the person who's living it. Thankfully, there are apps to help ensure that what should be private stays that way.

From messaging to web browsing to email, to open-source camera apps that watch for overzealous authorities pawing through your stuff, phones have the potential to be more than just surveillance-enabling tools.

Below is a list of apps that you should have downloaded in 2020. Your privacy doesn't need to be another casualty of a brutal year. These apps will help you protect it.

We've written about the encrypted messaging app Signal countless times before, but that's because it's earned the praise.

From ensuring your communications (voice, text, and yes, video) are end-to-end encrypted to making it easier to protect protesters' identities, the open-source app has garnered endorsements from the Mozilla Foundation, the Committee to Protect Journalists, Amnesty International, and even the U.S. military, among others.

The app is free and easy to use. If you can figure out iMessage or Facebook's Messenger (which you should not use), then you can figure out Signal.

Anonymously browsing the internet is more difficult than you might guess. And no, Incognito mode doesn't do what you think it does.

Using the Tor browser, available for a free download on your desktop, is the closest thing you can get to true anonymity on the internet (though there are some important provisos). Things are a bit trickier on your phone, but the Tor Android browser (sorry, nothing for iOS) is a step in the right direction.

If your safety or job depends on keeping your web browsing secret, then stick to a personal device and use Tor for desktop. If, on the other hand, you simply don't want corporations documenting everything you read on the internet, this is the app for you.

So you want to browse the internet privately on your phone, but you don't have an Android so you can't use the Tor browser (number two on this list). The Onion Browser is your next best bet — Tor even specifically recommends it.

"Your internet traffic is encrypted then bounced through three different parts of the world before reaching its destination," explains Onion Browser. "Internet service providers (ISP) and wifi network operators cannot see your browsing."

The browser offers three different levels of protections while browsing the internet (Gold, Silver, and Bronze), promising decreasing levels of security.

Importantly, there are some iOS-specific limitations that Onion Browser is quick to highlight. For example, this is not a virtual private network, and some services you use might still be able to figure out who you are.

"Please note that network traffic outside of Onion Browser is not protected and will continue to use your normal connection," reads one of several disclaimers on the site. "If you use Onion Browser to log into websites that you normally access outside of the Tor network, the website may be able to identify you and know that you are using Tor."

Even with those caveats in mind, Onion Browser offers more privacy than using iOS's native Safari browser.

Those looking for an easy mobile web-browsing experience who also want some elements of privacy missing from most mobile web browsing should look to the DuckDuckGo Privacy Browser. Importantly, it doesn't obscure your browsing habits like Tor. That doesn't mean it isn't a valuable addition to your phone, however.

DuckDuckGo Privacy Browser is perfect for those times when you want to log into an account associated with a website, like your paid New York Times account, for example, but you still want protection from all the site's associated ad trackers.

The app is a much smoother experience than Tor or Onion Browser, and offers a different set of protections. DuckDuckGo Privacy Browser "automatically [blocks] hidden third-party trackers" and "[forces] sites to use an encrypted (HTTPS) connection where available[.]"

(Firefox Focus, for both Android and iOS, serves a similar purpose and earns an honorable mention as another great privacy app.)

Why should anyone read your emails but you and the intended recipients?

ProtonMail is a free (with a paid tier) email provider and app that lets users encrypt — and later self-destruct — their digital missives. It works like a normal email service and app, but, unlike, say, Gmail, it allows the users to apply extra levels of security to their messages.

You can password protect a specific email, for example, so that even if hackers or law enforcement get access to the recipient's inbox they'll be unable to read the email without the password — a password that, presumably, you sent via a separate end-to-end encrypted channel like Signal.

And because privacy is worth paying for, for $5 a month you can get access to a host of extra features with ProtonMail Plus.

Want to keep an eye on your stuff, but (justifiably) creeped out by security cameras like Ring? Haven might just be the free, non-corporate option for you.

Designed with the "evil maid" attack in mind, Haven turns your old Android phone into a motion-sensitive camera. Essentially, it's a home-security system without the privacy nightmares associated with Amazon's Ring cameras.

"Haven turns any Android phone into a motion, sound, vibration, and light detector, watching for unexpected guests and unwanted intruders," explains the project's GitHub page.

If someone busts into your place while you're on a socially distanced walk, the Haven app will not only detect it, but will message you photos of the intruder. It's the kind of app that you hope you never need to rely on, but, if you do, you're sure glad you set it up.

5 Signs of a Smartphone Hack (and How to Protect Yourself) - Entrepreneur

Posted: 17 Dec 2020 05:00 AM PST

December 17, 2020 5 min read

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Mobile threats have been rapidly evolving over the past two years, and they're more sophisticated than ever before. If your device is compromised, you'll likely have additional tasks running that will decrease its performance. Watch for these five signs that you've been hacked, and learn a few tips on how to keep yourself protected in this dynamic threat landscape.

1. Warmer Device

A device that's running malware in the background, in addition to your normal use, is working harder. This means your device will likely feel warmer to the touch, just like how hot your device feels after a long telephone call. You'd be less likely to perceive this if you're using a case, however, and a more sophisticated attacker would schedule this code to run during a time of less use, like at night, so you don't notice the heat difference.

2. Battery Life Decreases Significantly

Just as your device might feel warmer to the touch, you might notice that your battery life exponentially decreases if you have malware on your phone. Again, this is more often a sign of poorly written code that's clunky and is running inefficiently; more sophisticated attacks will use better code, and they'll likely run at night when your phone is plugged in so you won't notice the rapid battery depletion.

3. Other Performance Issues

Besides temperature increase and/or decreased battery life, you might notice other performance issues with a compromised mobile device. These could include:

4. Random Apps Appearing on Your Device

It's definitely not normal for random apps to appear on your device. This is a problem more likely to occur with Android devices, especially if you've bypassed some default security settings. On a device with an Android OS, check to make sure developer tools and ADB debugging is disabled. That being said, if you've purchased a device new from major manufacturers, like Google or Samsung, these settings come automatically disabled and you shouldn't have to worry (it's always good to double-check, though).

5. Strange Text Messages

If your device is compromised, you may notice strange text messages. You may also notice your contacts are receiving strange messages from your device. This is likely just spam that's attempting to get you or your contacts to tap a malicious link, but it could mean you have malware on your phone that's programmed to send messages to other people in your address book.

There's Still Hope to Protect Yourself

Most cyberattacks have a way to prevent them, and there are some universally preventative measures you can take to make yourself a harder target as well as wipe out any malware that may currently be on your phone.

1. Reboot Frequently

Most malware for mobile devices is unable to persist past a device reboot. On some Samsung devices, these reboots can be scheduled to take place at specific times. On devices running iOS, you'll have to manually reboot. Threats that persist past a reboot are very sophisticated, and the vast majority of people are unlikely to be the targets of such a resource-intensive attack.

2. Update Your Operating System

Keeping your device and apps up to date is important because it's the way developers patch existing vulnerabilities. iOS devices almost force you to keep it updated, but Android devices might take a little more deliberate planning.

3. Upgrade Obsolete Devices

If your device can no longer download the latest updates, it means it's no longer supported. You're best off upgrading your device in this case. Here's a list of the current devices Apple is still supporting. If your job, travel or personal life make you more likely to be a target, you should think about upgrading your device more frequently or using a separate device for travel.

4. Security Apps

There are apps out there that can provide an extra level of security. One good example is a VPN to encrypt your web and app data. It's better to host your own, but if that sounds overwhelming, just make sure to do plenty of research before you give any app developer your money. Additionally, a threat detection app can detect app-based and network-based threats. Again, do your research before you download any security app, as this is a simple way for Trojan attacks to occur.

5. Encrypt Your Messages

Using an end-to-end encrypted messaging app can help keep prying eyes from seeing your messages; plus, they're harder to spam.

6. Think Before You Tap

It's almost cliche at this point, but think before you tap that link. If the URL looks odd to you, or the sender is unfamiliar, it's probably malicious.

While mobile device threats are becoming more sophisticated every year, they're still relatively simple to combat. Awareness is half of the battle, and remembering that that little phone you carry everywhere with you is vulnerable can help you take the steps necessary to protect yourself.

Signal now offering encrypted group video calls in iOS app - 9to5Mac

Posted: 15 Dec 2020 06:15 AM PST

Secure chat app Signal now lets you make encrypted group video calls in its iOS and Android apps. As with Apple's FaceTime, end-to-end encryption is used …

This means that not even Signal can decrypt the calls.

FaceTime is the default option for Apple users, but Signal now offers the same privacy protection for video chats with a mix of iPhone and Android participants.

Signal announced the new feature in a blog post.

Today, we're launching group calls in Signal with the latest versions of our apps. Group calls are free, private, and end-to-end encrypted — like everything else on Signal.

Now when you open a group chat in Signal, you'll see a video call button at the top. When you start a call, the group will receive a notification letting them know a call has started.

When you start or join a group call, Signal will display the participants in a grid view. You can also swipe up to switch to a view that automatically focuses the screen on who is speaking, and it will update in real time as the active speaker changes.

At present, group video calls are limited to just five people, and are only available in new-style Signal groups – but the company says it is working on both limitations.

You won't see the call button in your legacy groups, but your legacy Signal groups will start automatically updating to New Groups in the coming weeks. Group calls are currently limited to 5 participants, but we're working to let you have even more participants in a group call soon.

Back in the summer, Signal offered a way to transfer messages to a new iPhone. The company also joined Apple and other tech giants in condemning proposals to secretly add law enforcement to encrypted chats.

FaceTime, which also offers fully encrypted group video calls, recently began supporting 1080p in video calls.

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How to Enable Offline Finding on Your Galaxy So You Can Locate Your Phone in Airplane Mode - Gadget Hacks

Posted: 17 Dec 2020 02:01 PM PST

Nowadays, even the dumbest thieves know that the first thing you should do after you steal a phone is turn on airplane mode. Not only does this make it harder for police to track the phone through cell tower triangulation, but it also disables security features the person you stole it from may have implemented — for instance, Samsung's Find My Mobile service.

Starting in One UI 3.0, you can still track your Galaxy phone even when it's in airplane mode. The device will scan Bluetooth and Wi-Fi frequencies without being connected, and if it finds a nearby Samsung device with the same feature enabled, it will send an encrypted location report to the neighboring phone. As long as that phone is connected to the internet, it will then send your phone's location to Samsung's servers so you can still use the tracking feature.

What You'll Need

Galaxy device running One UI 3.0 or higher
PIN, pattern, or password set as screen lock

Step 1: Enable Find My Mobile

First, open your Settings app and scroll down a bit to select "Biometrics and security." Here, make sure the toggle switch next to "Find My Mobile" is turned on, then tap the actual "Find My Mobile" text to open a submenu.

How to Enable Offline Finding on Your Galaxy So You Can Locate Your Phone in Airplane Mode

Step 2: Enable Offline Finding

In the Find My Mobile submenu, tap the "Offline finding" text (rather than the toggle switch next to it). On the next screen, make sure both toggles are enabled. The first one turns the overall feature on, and the second one ensures that your phone's location reports are encrypted as they're transmitted to nearby Samsung devices and on to the Find My Mobile servers.

Now, you'll still be able to use the Find My Mobile location tracking feature even if a thief puts your phone in airplane mode — but again, only if there are internet-connected Galaxy devices nearby with this same feature turned on. It's also worth noting that you won't be able to wipe or lock the device remotely until it reconnects to the internet.

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