We are so used to apps on our smartphones that whenever we have something to do, a task to remember or a habit to adopt, we immediately search for the right app. As a result, we very rarely take a minute to consider if a given program is safe and whether it’s not a scam. However, there are numerous apps that should rather be avoided as they are either dangerous, they might give access to valuable data to some third parties or are simply useless. Find out which apps to avoid and consider uninstalling them if you already have them on your smartphone.
Free VPN
A VPN service is currently one of the best options to protect yourself and your device on the Internet. It ensures anonymity, secures your traffic from hackers and protects your data. However, if you want the service to be really safe and reliable, unfortunately, you need to pay for it. You will certainly find at least a dozen of free apps that are supposed to be VPNs, but in reality, they are unreliable and they do not ensure the level of protection you would expect. Another issue is that it might happen that the provider of a completely free VPN service not only ineffectively hide your data, but also store or even sell it to some third parties. Unreliable VPN service might put you in danger on numerous occasions, especially when you are logging in to your bank account, shopping online, or playing in an online casino. This last activity requires a valid, trustworthy VPN service, especially if you play in online casinos Qatar or in anywhere in the world. A VPN service makes it impossible to track your activity and as such, protects you from legal consequences. You might use the safest websites available, such as ArabianBetting, to choose a casino to play, and you should, but a reliable VPN service is a must in such situations.
Antivirus software and cleaners
We all know that antivirus software is necessary on every device that is connected to the Internet. However, there is a difference between a reliable piece of software and a free scam. Numerous apps offering free services are often simply unreliable and do not protect your smartphone the way you want it to be protected. It’s generally better to avoid such apps, not necessarily because they might be dangerous, but just ineffective. In the long run, such an unreliable piece of software might cause you more harm than good. Among the Android apps that are most often described as unreliable, you will find, for example, Virus Cleaner.
Many people also decide to install the so-called cleaners on their smartphones, as they believe that they will improve the battery, memory and generally the whole device. In most cases, these are just a scam. They might not be doing any harm, but they are certainly not as necessary as their inventors claim them to be. An example might be the app called CleanIt. Even though it does not pose any threat to your device, clearing the cache might slow down your smartphone, and in reality, it does not prolong the life of the battery. It’s not worth cluttering your phone with such apps.
Web browsers
A web browser is one of the basic apps that every device should have, and quite often, a new smartphone or tablet has the one already installed. However, still many users decide to go for less popular options and download other apps to use as web browsers. It’s good to know that not every one of them is reliable, and, sometimes, the lesser evil is the better option. In other words, it’s good to stick to Google or choose any other good browser. Among the web browsers that are most often marked as unreliable are UV Browser and Dolphin Browser. The analysts of cybersecurity emphasize that these apps do not protect data transmission in an adequate way and, in some cases, do not ensure any encryption at all. This leaves the user defenseless against hackers unless they take other security measures, but what is the point of using a web browser that requires you to download a few other apps to safely surf the Internet?
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