Both our personal and professional lives depend on smartphones. With the use of our calls having all but migrated to these devices, it’s been more critical than ever to protect the security of our calls. Whether we are talking about private matters with friends, bussiness with important business deals, or private health topics, all conversations should be confidential.
Unfortunately smartphones, like any digital device, can be eavesdropped on or even breached in terms of security unless proper security is employed. Your calls are always private, however, but public networks, unsecured apps and environmental things can compromise it. In this article, we will look into some ways through which you can guarantee that your smartphone calls will stay personal and safe.
Tip 1: Use End-to-End Encrypted Calling Apps
How End-to-End Encryption Protects Your Calls
One of the most powerful tools to help protect the privacy of your calls end to end encryption. An encrypted calling app is one that scrambles the conversation during transmission and only the person you are talking to has the decryption key to unzip it. With this, even if the hacker intercepts the call, they can’t hear, since they can’t decrypt the information.
The encryption makes sure that only the people you’re connected with can access the content of the encryption and you don’t have to worry about eavesdropping from hackers or service providers including application developers.
Apps like Signal or WhatsApp encrypt your calls and messages end to end, which means no one other than you, the other person involved in the group, and the data transferring service can access (and decyphere) what they contain even if your cellphone is lost or stolen.
Top recommended Encrypted Calling Apps for added security
Today there are many highly rated encrypted calling apps available but the one mentioned above is the most recommended and very effective. The open source nature and the robust security of signal is the reason under which it tops the list of most popular and most recommended apps for changing your phone number.
If that’s not enough, another solid alternative is WhatsApp, as by default, all voice and video calls come encrypted. These two apps are both free to use, and are easy to set up.
While apps like Zoom and Microsoft Teams provide encrypted calls for those who require business grade security, only specific settings can be enabled or in some cases the service must be paid for to get full range of encryption options. Irrespective of which app you select, either install it from a trusted source and update the same regularly to enjoy the newer security patches.
Tip 2: Don’t make sensitive calls over public Wi-Fi
What Makes Public Wi-Fi Dangerous to Call Security
Making phone calls while using public Wi-Fi can seem convenient but you can actually seriously compromise security on your phone. Because of that, public Wi-Fi networks are often not encrypted and are an easy target for cyber criminals.
In this case, calling over a public Wi-Fi network, peoples communication is intercepted by the malicious actors and access to people personal data is allowed. This is a “Man-in-the-Middle” (MITM) attack,… Other forms of hacking, like packet sniffing and spoofing can also happen over the public Wi-Fi networks and expose your sensitive information to 3rd parties.
Safely Making Calls With Mobile Data or a VPN
The best advice is not to use public Wi-Fi for sensitive conversations. Instead use up mobile data since that is usually more secure and encrypted. If you have to do this (or done it a lot in the past) make use of a Virtual Private Network (VPN).
If you were a hacker trying to get access to your phone and all of your data, but protected by a VPN, it would be a tough battle. Many VPNs have smartphone specific apps that work out of the box really easily. If you have the option, use your mobile data or a VPN to make sure that your calls stay safe even when you’re in a public space.
Tip 3: Enable the Call Encryption on Your Device
Another way to make your smartphone calls as secure as possible is to use call encryption. Just about every modern smartphone sports built in encryption features that can help secure the calls within your smartphone. Encryption means that, before it leaves your device, any voice data carried when making a call is encrypted so any access to it in transit is unreadable.
Preventing audio or video calls being accessed by unauthorized parties is a vital feature, and one that this particular feature provides. To allow call encryption you have to check the security settings of your phone and see if this feature is available. You’ll usually find encryption options under “Settings” > “Security” > “Encryption” on Android.
Tip 4: Be Aware Of The Environment
Environmental Factors Affecting Call Privacy
You don’t want to overly rely on technology to provide protection for your calls but your physical space is also something to be considered. It’s no secret many people aren’t aware they’re inadvertently compromising their call’s privacy by conversing in public places, where conversation can literally be overheard.
So it’s not alone in busy cafes, trains, even in busy offices with many people, there are all potential eavesdroppers who can hear very specifics details from the conversation you are having. Background noise and people around you can also make it hard to ensure total privacy while you are making calls. So when you think you’re speaking softly, others will still hear crucial parts of your conversation.
Whenever you are making secure call in crowd places, definitely try to find a quite and secret place, so that there will not be any other people around to listen to your listening. If you can, stick with noise cancelling headphones or a Bluetooth headset to help mask calls to a certain degree.
If you make a lot of sensitive calls and need the most advanced privacy you can manage, consider buying a phone that offers that. For instance, one example is where you have HONOR Magic 7 Pro with its ‘AI Privacy Call20’ that automatically goes into privacy mode when in quiet surroundings such as meeting rooms.
It helps reduce sound leakage of your conversations so that no one can make out what you are saying. If you’re interested, the HONOR Magic 7 Pro price in Malaysia is great value for the extra security you get as this is a great option for those that are worried about privacy.
Tip 5: Regularly Update Your Device and Apps
Keeping your calls safe depends on software updates. The manufacturers release of updates are all the time to handle vulnerabilities, enhance performance and enhance encryption protocols. If you don’t update your device and apps, you allow these known security threats to attack you.
The latest updates of your device often contain changes like the patches which protect your device from latest hacking techniques and vulnerabilities that can be exploited to intercept calls. Almost every smartphone offer the ability to enable automatic updates, which means your device will always be up to date.
If you would rather check for updates yourself, simply head over to your phone’s “Settings” > “Software Updates” or “System Updates,” and confirm that you’re all up to date. If you are doing apps, make sure you have automatic updates on on the Google Play Store (Android) so your apps are ALWAYS up to date and safe from the latest threats.
Conclusion
In today’s connected world, building smartphone calls for privacy and security. Follow the techniques I described in this article to protect any personal and professional conversations from tracking and unauthorised access. And by keeping these habits, you’ll be able to assure yourself that your calls are private and secure in an ever more digital world. Advanced security features such as AI Privacy Call give you extra peace of mind, while simple actions like updating your device go a long way toward keeping your privacy safe.
