When you’re an iPhone user, one of your top priorities should be safety and protecting your data, as things can get pretty scary when your information is leaked to someone you don’t know.
Although iPhones already come with security settings that are already set in place and automatic safety features, there are more things you can do as a user to keep yourself safe. A lot of this begins in your iPhone’s settings, as there are settings that might need some adjusting to ensure your smartphone is extra secure. Within your settings, you can do things like keep an eye out for the apps on your phone, detecting whether or not your data is safe. We spoke to a tech pro about three iPhone settings you should adjust to stop your device’s apps from getting hacked and tracking you. Read more about them below.
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1. Location Services
If you have been an iPhone owner for a while now, then you've likely heard of the Location Services section of your settings. This area is not one to be ignored or overlooked, as it can help you manage which apps and features do or do not have access to your location.
"Enabling Location Services allows apps to access your iPhone's current location," explains tech pro Alix Gallardo. "This can be helpful for apps like Google Maps to suggest nearby places or provide directions. Some apps genuinely need your location, like 'Find My iPhone,' but others, such as a credit card app, don't require your location to function. For those, it's best to set 'Allow Location Access' to 'Never' for maximum privacy."
2. Tracking
Similar to Location Services, the Tracking section of your iPhone's settings is crucial when it comes to checking and managing not only which apps can track where you're located, but websites as well. Therefore, it's super important to keep an eye on the Tracking section.
"App Tracking allows apps to monitor your activity across other apps and websites, often for targeted advertising or data profiling. This means these third-party apps can share the tracking with data brokers," notes Gallardo. "Limiting this setting helps protect your privacy by reducing how much of your behavior is tracked. If you give permission for your activity to be tracked, the app can allow information about you or your device collected through the app, as an example, a user, a device ID, name, email address or other identifying data provided by you, to be combined with information about you or your device collected by third parties or on third party apps, sites or properties."
If you're having trouble accessing these settings on your phone, you can access them by following these steps. For Location Services, you follow Settings -> Privacy & Security -> Location Services. For Tracking, you go to Settings -> Privacy & Security -> Tracking.
