Android phones have a lot going for them: some come with great cameras, built-in and preloaded Google apps, and more. But these smartphones are also at risk from potential threats such as hackers or malware. You’ll want to check your apps, stop websites from tracking you, and more.
Be sure to follow our steps today to change your Android privacy settings.
Settings may vary depending on your Android phone manufacturer
Change your Android privacy settings
permission manager
Apps collect all kinds of data from users, and sometimes you don’t even realize you’ve given them permission to see it. You should check each app and the permissions you grant – so apps that don’t need your location don’t have access to it.
- open your set up
- tap privacy
- tap permission manager
- Click on each app one at a time and decide what each app should “allow”.
encrypt your android phone
If you have an Android device from before 2015, it may not be encrypted. This means your data may be compromised and you will need to enable this setting manually.
- open your set up
- tap Safety
- tap advanced
- tap Encryption and Credentials
- If your phone doesn’t already have one, you’ll see the option to tap encrypted phone (this may take a while)
If you don’t see this option, your phone is probably newer and already encrypted.
Google Chrome Safe Browsing Protection
While Google Chrome comes pre-installed on many Android devices, it does come with its own security risks.Google Chrome has You can adjust your privacy settings, some experts even recommend not using Chrome at all for security reasons. But it’s a handy and capable browser, so using Safe Browsing protection might be a good alternative to removing it.
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Safe Browsing helps monitor websites as you browse the internet and helps determine if you have come across unsafe websites, links, or ads. You may receive a warning that the website you are trying to visit is not safe:
- Open Google Chrome Apps on Android
- tap more with three dots
- tap set up
- tap Privacy and Security
- tap safe browsing
- You can then choose the level of Safe Browsing you want to use: enhanced protection, standard protection (we recommend this so you can choose whether you want to send Google information) or no protection
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Turn on Do Not Track
Android phones allow you to send requests to the websites you browse asking them not to track you while using Google Chrome. It’s important to note that asking them not to request or track your data does not guarantee this, as websites may still choose to track your information. However, it’s better than not requesting it, as some sites will honor this request.
- Open Google Chrome Apps on Android
- tap more with three dots
- tap set up
- tap Privacy and Security
- tap do not track
- Open settings to request sites not to track you
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