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When it comes to protecting your security when you use your iPhone there are a number of good — and not so great — settings that you should either enable or disable to ensure your privacy and well-being. We spoke with tech privacy experts who clued us in on the iPhone setting you need to turn on right now (as well as a few that you should turn off). Here’s what you need to know to keep yourself protected while connected.
Let’s start with some of the most helpful settings for your safety that you’ll find on your iPhone.
“The settings you should turn on include: Emergency SOS, Find my iPhone, and Face ID, as these can all contribute to you and your iPhone’s safety during robbery or theft,” says Cybersecurity Analyst Eric Florence. To make use of Emergency Services on an iPhone, press and hold the side button and a volume button until the Emergency SOS slider appears. When you drag the slider a countdown starts.
You can set up Find My Phone by going into Settings > Tap on your name > tap “Find My” > Turn on “Find My (device).”
Set up Face ID by going into Settings > Face ID & Passcode > tape “Set Up Face ID.”
There are also a number of settings that privacy experts advise you disable in order to keep yourself safer. At the top of the list you’ll find this one: microphone permission.
“You know when you first download an app and a bunch of pop ups appear asking you for access to your camera?” says Tech Expert Michelle Fleagle at Dotted Line Communications. “Probably not, and it's designed that way. We are so used to clicking away our permissions without thinking about it but it's important to take back control. The good news is that iOS 14 is making this easier by allowing you to navigate the permissions you might have granted and revoke them, if necessary.”
Fleagle says the one permission she would revoke to protect your data is microphone access. “This is granting apps permission to listen in on what you are saying and funnel that information to fuel marketing campaigns, advertisements, or worse if the app has bad intent,” Fleagle says. “For this reason, revoking microphone access for as many apps as possible is a sure way to keep your information to yourself and away from lurking businesses.”
To disable microphone on iOS 14, Fleagle says you can go into Settings > Privacy > Microphone — and then don’t forget to toggle off as many apps as you see fit.
