How To Clean Up Your Cell Phone

If you are guilty of having apps cluttered all over your screen then you are not alone. Smartphones loaded with too many apps can slow down your phone, allow third-party apps to access your data, shorten battery life, or worse, crash your phone.

Every once in a while every phone needs a cleanup. This time of year is a great time to take out the old and bring in the new. Here are a few tips to help you clean your phone.

1. Don’t want it? Delete it.

Apps are notorious for taking up space on your phone. Arrange apps in the order of usage. If you think you haven’t used an app in over a month then you probably don’t need it.

2. The backup plan.

As a general rule, regularly backup your data. This not only frees up space in your phone, but it also speeds it up. If your phone is taken over by ransomware, you will still have your data.

3. How many people are in your phone?

You build contacts as you learn and grow in this world. You add them to your address book. As you move from one phone to another, you are carrying these numbers and details to the next device, and the one after that. Finally, you end up with more contacts than the number of people you actually know. Go through your contacts and delete the ones you know you won’t need.

4. Music, messages, and maps

There was a time when music was downloaded and saved on phones. Now with Wi-Fi being available almost everywhere and apps that stream music, the need to save music has declined. Text messages take up a lot of space too. Memes, videos, gifs, etc, live in your feed and take up precious real estate. Delete them once you’ve read them. Apps like maps, ride-sharing services, and other services that use geolocation running in the background and slow down your phone. Turn them off when not in use.

5. Time to change your password

Changing passwords regularly keeps your device safe from cyber attacks. Use unique passwords that use a combination of at least 10 upper and lowercase letters, symbols, and numbers. The key is to make it difficult for attackers to access your information by changing your passwords every three months and not reusing passwords for multiple accounts.

6. Check for software updates and patches

Software patches and update notifications show up at the oddest moments. While it is highly recommended that you update your phone immediately upon receiving them, sometimes people can miss the notification. Check your phone’s settings, and make sure that you are running the latest version of the software. Ignoring security updates exposes your phone to vulnerabilities that can be exploited.

7. Clean on the inside and clean on the outside

Do not forget to remove your phone cover and wipe down your phone with a clean cloth. Read the cleaning instructions that came with your phone. Using wet wipes and alcohol solutions may damage the phone.

8. Safety first

Use a reliable security suite to keep your phone safe from cyber attacks. Norton WiFi Privacy encrypts the data you send and receive when using an unsecured public WiFi, protecting your information that may be vulnerable to attack.

Make sure you maintain the health of your phone with good cyber habits.

This content was originally published on Norton.com.

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