Clean your phone for a better digital life

If apps are cluttering 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, your phone could benefit from a clean-up. Here are a few tips to help you spring 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, moving those least used to the back. 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 on your phone, it also speeds it up. Should your phone be targeted by malware or ransomware, you will still have your data.

3. How many people are in your phone?

You build contacts, 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 connect with. 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 in phones. Now with Wi-Fi available almost everywhere and apps to 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 space. Delete them once you’ve read or replied to them. Apps like maps, ride sharing services, and other services that use geo location run in the background and slow down your phone — turn them off when not in use.

5. Time to change your password

Changing passwords regularly helps keep your device safe from cyber attack. Use unique passwords that use a combination of at least 12 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 may show up at the oddest moments. While it is highly recommended that you update your phone immediately upon receiving them, sometimes people miss the notification. Check your phone settings, and make sure that you are running the latest version of the software. Ignoring security updates exposes your phone to vulnerabilities that may 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 help keep not only your phone safe from cyber attacks, but also your other devices like laptops and tablets. 

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