Modern smartphones have become a repository of our entire lives – from photos to access to bank accounts.
It is important to know how to recognize a possible hacking of the device and what to do in such situations.
One sign that should alert you is the appearance of a green dot on the Android screen or an orange dot on the iPhone in the upper right corner. These indicators signal that the camera or microphone is working. If you did not activate them yourself, this may mean that the device is infected with malware.
Hackers are able to introduce such programs remotely without having physical access to the phone. To check the activity on your iPhone, you can open the Control Center, where it is indicated which programs are using the microphone, camera or geolocation. It is also recommended to enable the “App Privacy Report” feature in the settings to see detailed information about the actions of the applications.
Another alarming symptom is unexpected heating of the device and a sharp decrease in battery power.
You should pay special attention to applications that are not downloaded from the official store. They can disguise themselves as safe applications, which makes them difficult to remove.
If you receive emails purporting to be from social networks or banks asking you to change your password, this may be an attempt to steal your data. Such emails often contain links to fake websites that look like official ones but are designed to install malware or steal your credentials.
Frequent calls from a bank asking for your card or secret codes can also be a sign of fraud. Real bank employees do not ask for such information over the phone. If this happens, it is best to end the conversation immediately and contact the bank using the official number.