How Do I Protect Access to My Smartphone?

Whether you use an Android or Apple smartphone, you should always protect access to it with a screen lock. We recommend setting it to lock automatically after a few minutes.

On an Android smartphone, go to Settings → Screen lock. Among other options, you can choose:

Screen lock: PIN
Automatically lock: choose how many minutes should pass before the phone locks.

The PIN should be at least five digits long.

“00000” and “12345” are not secure PINs.

For useful tips on securing an iPhone, see the separate iPhone guide.

Pattern Unlock

Pattern locks can also be used as a screen lock. However, they can be guessed by holding the smartphone at an angle against the light and looking for traces on the screen.

Fingerprint Sensor

A fingerprint sensor can also be used to unlock the phone. However, we leave our fingerprints in many places every day. If someone is highly motivated to gain access to the data on your smartphone, fingerprints can be reproduced using household materials. Here are the CCC’s instructions How to forge a fingerprint: https://www.ccc.de/en/updates/2013/ccc-breaks-apple-touchid.