Must Have Apps

[Raefey]

Most smart phone users will know what I mean when I say it's difficult to keep private stuff unseen on your phone. Phones get passed around for what ever reason and a lot of people think it's fine to browse through your apps and check out what you've got. This can be dangerous if you've been browsing sites that you don't want to share for example. Here's some of the apps I use to keep my private stuff private. What do you use?

- Atomic Web Browser -> An absolute must have

    - passcode access so you can leave all your tabs open on your fav posts, stories, sites

    - Privacy mode to erase what you've been looking at if needed

    - downloads so you can download documents, images, sites an make them available offline (only within the passcoded app)

    - used with gmail gives you a secure email solution 

- iFiles -> Allows you to save and create documents in secure passcoded folders away from casual browsers

Obviously these don't completely protect your private info and such but it could give you a bit more confidence when your phone is being passed around a pub or something similar!

[lil_baby_wet_n_squishy]

Simply turning on the pw/pin for your phone is all you really need to keep unwanted people off your phone. Also ensures that you data stays safe if your phone is lost or stolen.

[Raefey]

Yea but even when friends or family just want to play a game on it, take a photo, look something up etc... It's nice to know you can let them without a feeling they might find something you'd rather they didn't.

I wasn't really talking about people using your phone without your knowledge.

[sarah_ab]

ive only ever had one person ask to look at it and she know im into some freaky stuff so just moves over anything like that .... if you dont want people seeing it either dont have it on your phone or dont let people use your phone

[AutieAB]

Simply turning on the pw/pin for your phone is all you really need to keep unwanted people off your phone. Also ensures that you data stays safe if your phone is lost or stolen.

While they might deter casual nosiness, most on-phone or on-SIM pins and passwords can be overridden if you know how or with a bit of Googling. There's always a backdoor in one form or another in case you forget the code

It might be obvious, but perhaps the best solution to this problem is to not browse private things on mobile phones if you frequently hand it to other people?

[hidden]

1. No one touches my phone but me.

2. My phone doesn't know what an app is.

3. My phone doesn't know what the web is.

4. Wait till you get home to go on your computer to go to those types of sites.

[Zander]

Simply turning on the pw/pin for your phone is all you really need to keep unwanted people off your phone. Also ensures that you data stays safe if your phone is lost or stolen.

Oh how wrong you are At work we have an entire EM shielded lab dedicated to getting the data of mobile computing devices - usually remotely and without the target knowing. Getting phones to do things they shouldn't too - like calling premium rate numbers without it even appearing to be in a call, or turning on the mic and GPS and streaming that data to us remotely without the user being able to detect it.

If we have physical access to the phone - well, lets just say that's not really a challenge. For a start the entropy in the average phone pin is so laughable (especially on touch-screen phones) its nothing but a basic privacy shield against the curious partner/family member/friend . The data stored on your phone isn't encrypted nearly all the time, and unless its managed through a proper enterprise grade system which can enforce policy like Blackberry and a properly managed BES, your phone is pretty damn insecure.

Its a little more challenging to remotely access most phones, but you'd be amazed what can be sucked off them with nothing but a laptop, some code and a blue-tooth antenna.

BTW: only 12 weeks left until DEF CON 19 I'm already looking forward to seeing the "This is REALLY not the droid you're looking for..." talk.