Are your devices secure?
How your Apple kit protects your data
Apple is known for the security of its devices, especially compared to Windows and Android. But as the proliferation of digital technology has accelerated, Apple devices have become more appetising targets for the ne’er-do-wells of the world.
That means it’s more important than ever to understand how to make your devices as secure as they can be.
Security setbacks
Despite its long-standing reputation for watertight security, Apple has suffered a number of embarrassing security slips in the recent past.
There have been a number of instances of simple text messages crashing iPhones because they contain a glyph the phone cannot process. It has been found that the all-powerful root user on your Mac could be easily accessed without a password, which could potentially put your computer at risk. And the Meltdown and Spectre vulnerabilities showed that Macs are far from infallible (although these exploits also affected Windows).
These stories illustrated the need to keep your Apple devices as up to date as possible and ensure that you don’t miss out on essential patches from Apple. But installing the latest updates is not the only way you can keep all of your devices safe.
Luckily, as Apple users we have a lot of built-in security features at our disposal. Apple has been very careful to stop threats in their tracks, with features like Gatekeeper, FileVault and the Secure Enclave coming as standard in Apple’s latest kit.
In fact, the recent security scares were, in a way, exceptions that proved the rule of Apple security. The fact that they generated so much press was due, in part, to the rarity of such serious exploits in both Macs and iOS devices. Generally speaking, as an Apple user you are much more resistant to hacks, exploits and vulnerabilities than your friends on Android and Windows.
Sandbox safety
On your Mac, one reason for that excellent security is the way Macs handle and install apps. Each app is ‘sandboxed’, meaning its privileges are limited to ensure it behaves only as you expect. That makes it much harder for malicious code to exploit apps and put your computer at risk.
It’s also very easy to see what apps are able to access on your computer. For example, go to System Preferences > Security & Privacy > Location Services to see which apps can find out about your location. On your iPhone, you can get the same information in Settings > Privacy > Location Services.
Still, there are plenty of things you can do to strengthen the security of your devices. Over the next few pages we’ll take you through the key steps to boosting your protection.