Another year, another wave of cyber attacks to be wary of.
Cybersecurity experts are warning everyone with an Android or iPhone to check the security of their devices, following a recent wave of cyber attacks.
Google recently issued a ‘severe’ alert about 51 bugs, leaving billions of its active users vulnerable to security threats.
This announcement follows the 'sophisticated' system attacks that occurred on Transport for London and the NHS back in September 2024, costing 'several million pounds,' as per the BBC.
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Not to mention, the massive breach at telecom giant AT&T enabled the illegal data download from 109 million US customer accounts.
Meanwhile, ongoing attacks on Gmail and Apple ID are also causing problems for mobile users.
Fortunately, there’s a simple check users can do from their handheld devices to reduce the chances of falling victim to these attacks.
For those with a Google account - this involves you Android users - the Google account security check-up tool is an ideal option to protect your device's security.
As per Forbes, this tool allows you to activate enhanced safe browsing, review recent security activity, update account recovery options and adjust sensitive preferences. Whilst Google prompts users to check this feature once a month or so, it's worth doing so more often especially in the wake of recent news.
For those iPhone users running iOS 16 or later, you can use the iPhone Safety Check to manage your phone's security.
To do so, you'll need to go to Settings, Privacy & Security, then press on Safety Check. Otherwise, you can find step-by-step instructions on the Apple Support website.
With this feature, users can also select an Emergency Reset which stops the sharing of all information through apps or choose a management option to review sharing restrictions.
Thankfully, this setting will also tell you if you have stolen device protection enabled - a necessity against modern-day thieves.
"Google and iPhone security checks are a simple yet crucial way to check whether any of your accounts are potentially vulnerable," said Jake Moore, global cybersecurity advisor at ESET.
"Looking at your device’s safety checks is a great way to double down on protecting your personal data, reviewing your privacy and account access and making sure your passwords are all unique."
Whilst regularly updating your device’s operating system is 'essential,' the generic updates will 'only go as far as patching known device vulnerabilities.'
Moore added: "Google and Apple safety checks go the extra mile and offer you the ability to check where security issues may arise in the future."