How to Boost iPhone Privacy Via Settings?
Every year, hackers, spammers, malware, etc. become stronger and start threatening the online privacy and security system. Despite installing an antivirus, your gadgets still run a chance to introduce malware, ransomware, etc. Even your smartphone can transfer your data on an unauthorized platform. If you are using an iPhone, you can rely on Apple quite a bit as the company focuses on offering privacy to its users. Still, your iPhone collects and shares some information about you. Fortunately, you can control the amount of data it takes away about you, and do so, use the guide given below:
Hide Notification Previews When Phone Is Locked
If you find people looking at your smartphone’s lock screen and checking the notification, then it’s a breach of privacy. Everyone should have access to your iPhone as they might see any private notification or information that shouldn’t be shared with anyone. You can avoid such a situation by opening the Settings app. Then, click on Notifications and select Show Previews. Doing so will hide the notifications from your device’s lock screen.
You can choose to check your notifications on the lock screen by choosing between Always, When Unlocked, or Never preview options. The best option is ‘When Unlocked’ as it will show you notifications only when unlocking your device via fingerprint ID or face ID.
Disable Personalized Ads
Like every other platform, iOS also shows personalized ads, and to fetch you those ads, Apple has to keep track of all your information. But you can stop Apple from fetching your information to use for advertisements by going to the Settings app. Then, click on Privacy and tap on Apple Advertising. You can also turn off the toggle for Personalized Ads to receive generic ads only.
Check App Permissions
You can tweak the permissions you have given to the apps installed on your device easily from the Settings app. The Privacy page on it contains multiple options so that you can check anything you want. You can even choose the permission types and disable/ enable the apps to use the functions like camera, location, microphone, contacts, etc. of your phone. It is essential to look through all the apps and permissions to ensure that your data is not landing on the wrong platform.
If you want to have more control over the Apps Permissions, check the Tracking item with a toggle to let all the apps request you to track you around. You can turn off unnecessary permissions at any time for preventing the apps from getting access to your data and personal information. If you choose to make changes, ensure that you don’t disable the permission for something necessary as lots of apps need different permissions to function correctly.
Control Location Sharing
A lot of apps ask for your location, but only a few should get access. Permitting to track your location is essential at times, but majorly it is a sensitive piece of information that should not be shared with anyone. It can lead the stalkers and thieves to keep an eye on you. You can prevent getting into trouble by opening the Settings app on your phone. Then, go to Privacy and click on Location Service. This option will change the location options and let you choose the apps that can access your current location.
If you are worried about people keeping track of you, check the System Services tab and click on Significant Locations. This setting will prevent people from keeping a tab of the places you visit.
Don’t Send Diagnostic Data
While setting up your phone and after installing an update, your phone will ask for your permission so that it can collect and share your data with Apple. The company wants the information to track bugs and fix issues on your device, but it can feel unsafe to share everything. If you don’t like to share any information, then visit the Settings app of your device. Then, click on Privacy and select Analytics & Improvements. From here, disable the toggle for ‘Share iPhone Analytics’ to stop sharing the diagnostic information.
If you want to check everything your device has collected and shared with the company, tap on Analytics Data. You can also stop your device from keeping a tab of the commands you gave to Siri by disabling the Improve Siri & Dictation toggle.
Make Safari Safe and Private
Safari is the official browser on Apple devices. It also aims to provide privacy but has its limitations. However, if you want to get the best out of this browser, you have to make a few changes in the privacy settings in Safari. You can do this by going to the Settings app and then, click on Safari. Some websites use third-party cookies to track your browsing activity. If you want to get rid of this, then try enabling the Prevent Cross-Site Tracking option. You can also keep your browsing data clean by tapping on the Clear History and Website Data option.
These are some of the basic settings you can apply on your iPhone for a more secure and private setup. You can use these methods on your iPad as well. These methods will help you have more control over your data and privacy.
