How to Secure your Android Devices with Pattern, PIN, or Password

The smartphone is a necessity nowadays, whether you are a teen or a septuagenarian. Everyone loves a device which is handy and can do everything that a desktop does. Due to the portability of the device, it has become a part of our daily lives.

As the prevalence of smartphones has increased, phone manufacturing companies have induced features to upgrade device security. Smartphones are available in various platforms such as iOS, Windows, and Android. Android phones have a considerable user-base across the globe. As the popularity of the smartphones has increased, the threat of cybercrime also has increased at an alarming rate. Likewise, keeping your devices secure is very important.

In this article, we will discuss the ways in which we can keep our Android devices secure from hackers and inquisitive people around us.

Cogitating the security and privacy of the smartphones, Android offers various ways to keep your device secure.

See Also: Tidying Tips for A Smart Android User

Let’s discuss the most popular ways used to secure your device:

1. Lock Pattern: You can draw a pattern lock with the help of nine dots arranged in a grid fashion of 3*3. Choose a pattern hard enough to emulate. However, keep the pattern simple enough to remember or memorize it to avoid future hassles.

Pros:

• Hard to copy (if all the 9 points used to weave the pattern)
• Easy to remember

Cons:

• Leaves a smudge trail (if you are not a regular screen cleaner)
• The Pattern is vulnerable if you have a Sherlock Holmes around you!

2. Pin (4- Digit Pin): A numerical quantity comprising the digits 0 to 9 can be chosen to set a 4-digit pin. It is advised to choose a pin which is easy to remember but hard to guess by the people around you.

See Also: 8 Ways to Secure Your Android Device

Pros:

• Easy to use hence popular
• Leaves no Smear.

Cons:

• Not advised unless you choose a unique set of numbers.

3. Password: You can set an alpha-numeric password along with the special characters. The Password must be minimum 4 characters and maximum 17 characters. It is advised to choose a password which is a combination of letters, number, and special characters.

Pros:

• Strong and Recommended if random words are used.
• Not easy to copy.

Cons:

• Time needed to enter the lengthy passwords.
• Difficult to remember.

By now, you might have set your mind upon which option to choose. Let’s discuss how to enable the security lock:

1. Go to Security (Gear Icon) – It can be accessed either from the main menu or from notification tray.

2. This list will appear, search for Security-> Screen Security.

3. Several options are available to choose and set a lock – Pattern, Pin or Password.
4. As briefed above, you can draw a pattern or choose a pin or password to secure the device.
5. While choosing an option, you need to keep in mind your convenience and accountability as the device is used now and then.

There is still a debate on which of these options is the safest as each of them have some loopholes of some kind or the other. So, before deciding which one will keep your device impregnable, you need to consider all pros and cons.

 However, whichever option you choose, it is always good to have some form of security rather than having none.

What are you still thinking? Don’t wait for the Games of Thrones episode to finish! You can watch it on Netflix anytime. Secure your smartphones first.

#Let’s Do It!