What could be scarier than not knowing whether or not your phone has a virus and what data is being stolen from you — right from under your nose? If detected early, you can make a plan, change your passwords, and oftentimes freeze hackers out of your accounts before they have the opportunity to do major damage (like swiping your financial information). But that proactive measure relies upon you knowing some of the most common signs that your iPhone has a virus.
Here are four scary signs that your iPhone has a virus and how to get rid of it, step by step.
Your Phone Has Apps You Didn’t Install
All of a sudden your iPhone has a bunch of apps that you are 100 percent positive you didn’t install. What’s actually happening? This could be a serious sign of a hacker infiltrating your phone. Go to General Settings > iPhone Storage > and scroll to see the apps you’ve installed. If you notice one that you didn’t put there yourself, make sure you click on it to delete it.
Increased Data Usage
You use your iPhone quite a bit — but if lately you’ve been noticing your data usage is all over the map, it could be the result of a bad app that is sending your data elsewhere. To find out if this is the case for you, go to Settings > Cellular > and scroll down to see your list of apps. If one or two apps stand out as using up a ton of data, it could be a sign of a virus. A phone with a battery that dwindles fast or that heats up could also be a sign of a virus, though more often than not it’s probably a problem with your phone itself.
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Your Calendar App Is Acting Weird
If your calendar app is suddenly acting strange — let’s say a link redirects you to subscribe to a calendar, go to your main settings and tap on Calendar and Accounts. If you see anything suspicious here, tap “delete” to get rid of it.
You’ve Recently Used Public Wi-Fi
If you’re experiencing any kind of mayhem on your phone and have just recently used a public Wi-Fi connection, the two may be connected. Hackers are notorious for infiltrating phones via a public Wi-Fi network. Never use public networks to do things like online shop or check your banking statements. If you must use it, be brief and save these other tasks for when you’re on a secure network.
How To Get Rid Of a Virus
There are a few steps you can take to both prevent viruses and get rid of one:
** Don’t use public charging stations — avoid these at all costs because the risks aren’t worth the benefits.
** Turn on two-factor authentication — this adds an extra, needed layer of security to keep you protected.
** Don’t leave your phone alone — never learn your phone unattended, especially in a public place.
** Download any app and software upgrades — do this as soon as you can, as soon as they come out is preferable.
** Don’t click on suspicious links — if you don’t know the sender (or even if you do and the link itself looks like something they wouldn’t ordinarily send) don’t click on the link.
