Whether you’re a seasoned iPhone user or just switched over to the iOS platform, there are a number of settings within iOS 11 you might not know about that’ll really improve your whole iPhone security experience. From security and privacy to productivity and efficiency, today we’ll be walking you through twelve settings you should switch in order to get the most out of your iPhone.
1. Stop Apple from Tracking Your Behavior and Using It to Advertise to You
In order to stop Apple from tracking your phone usage and limit the ads you’re being served, do the following: Visit “Settings” and scroll down until you see “Privacy”. From there, tap “Advertising” and then enable “Limit Ad Tracking”. You’ll still see advertising, but your personal information won’t be used in order to deliver these ads.
2. Stop Sharing iPhone Analytics
If you really want to increase your privacy, another great setting to check out is within the Analytics area. Simply visit “Settings” and right below “Advertising” you’ll see “Analytics”. Tap into this section and disable “Share iPhone Analytics”.
3. Disable Location-Based Apple Ads
Under “Privacy”, go to “Location Services” and find “System Services”. Once there, you’ll find the option to go ahead and disable “Location-Based Apple Ads”. Also, within the same “System Services” section, you can scroll down and disable the following “iPhone Analytics”, “Popular Near Me”, “Routing & Traffic”, and “Improve Maps”.
4. Disable In-App Ratings & Reviews
If don’t want pop-ups asking you to review apps all the time, do the following: Settings>iTunes & App Stores and disable “In-App Ratings & Reviews”.
5. Disable Video Autoplay
If you’re tired of browsing the app store and seeing app previews autoplay, then you’ll love this one. Within “iTunes & App Stores”, find “Video Autoplay” and turn it off.
6. Make Your Passcode Longer Than Just 4 Digits
This one should be a no-brainer but is definitely worth mentioning. Settings>Touch ID & Passcode>Change Passcode. From here you’ll be asked to input your current passcode, then set a new one.
7. Limit the Data Accessible When Your Phone Is Locked
You might not realize it, but a lot of your data is vulnerable even when your phone is locked. To make your iPhone more secure, visit the “Touch ID & Passcode” menu again and scroll down to the section that reads “Allow Access When Locked”. Here, you can limit the access to data when your phone is locked.
8. Enable Two-Factor Authentication
If you have a few Apple devices, it’s a great idea to enable Two-Factor Authentication. To do this, visit the “Password & Security” section and make sure Two-Factor Authentication is “On”. This will make it so you have to enter the second code on your other device in order to log in to your Apple account.
9. Auto-Lock Your iPhone
To improve the security of your iPhone, it’s recommended to enable Auto-Lock. To do this, visit “Display & Brightness” under the “Settings” menu and find “Auto-Lock”. Here, you can set the amount of time before your phone automatically locks – a minute or less is recommended.
10. Turn on Night Shift
Also under “Display & Brightness”, find “Night Shift”. This will change the color of your screen slightly so that it’s easier on the eyes at night.
11. Enable “Send Last Location” within Find My iPhone
You probably already have “Find My iPhone” enabled, however, turning on “Send Last Location” is even better. If your phone’s battery is about to die, it’ll send out one last location signal so that if you, unfortunately, lose your phone, you’ll know the first place to check.
12. Turn off WiFi Assist to save your data
WiFi assist will use your cellular data if the current WiFi signal isn’t strong enough, which could cause you to run through data pretty quickly if you’re not paying attention. Turning this setting off by following Settings>Cellular>WiFi Assist will reduce your cellular data usage.
As you’ve probably gathered by this point, there are a ton of settings within your iPhone that you can tweak in order to vastly improve your security and privacy. If you have any tips or tricks that haven’t been covered here today, feel free to leave them in the comments section!
