We live in an age where computer security is at the forefront of many people’s minds. There are loads of horror stories about computers and even mobile devices getting hacked.

Some people choose to avoid using their online banking because they are paranoid someone will steal their cash! Security experts tell us to be vigilant when clicking on email links. And even receiving phone calls from people purporting to be from Microsoft.

Antivirus software and Internet security suite packages help to filter out malware that can infect our PCs. But what about mobile devices, like smartphones?

When we go out and about, we will often take our smartphones with us. The Apple iPhone is one of the more “secure” smartphones on the market, as each app runs in its own separate memory space.

Even taking that into account, it can become vulnerable to outside attacks, just like with all smartphones. Some people choose to “jailbreak” their iPhones, and so those folks become more exposed to hacks.

You might be wondering why I’m talking about computer and smartphone security. Especially when the topic of this blog post is about sending secure files to third parties.

I thought I should start off talking about computer and smartphone security for one good reason. A lot of malware infections and computer hacks occur as a result of social hacking. Have you heard of that term before?

If not, I’ll give you a brief overview. Social hacking occurs when someone tries to learn about some key personal details from places that hold data about you. For instance, they might phone up your bank and pretend to be you, so that they can find out how much money you’ve got.

Fraudsters can also learn more about you by reading data your phone sends over unsecure Wi-Fi connections. Data can include login details, bank account details and even personal information.

If you need to send secure data from your smartphone, such as files, good security is essential. The following ways will ensure your files can’t get hacked by unauthorised people.

Only use secure Wi-Fi connections

Let’s face it; Wi-Fi connections are cheap to use and available from most public places. But you shouldn’t use unsecure connections. It’s like the mobile version of leaving your home’s front door wide open!

Consider using 4G connections instead

4G mobile Internet connections are just as fast, if not faster than your home or work broadband. The added bonus of sending files from your smartphone using 4G is that all mobile data gets encrypted. It’s harder to spy on data send over 4G than it is over Wi-Fi. Click here for more information about Mobile Data from Comverse.

Use secure apps

Dropbox is a great way to share files with friends, family members and co-workers. You can access files from any device around the world.

If you need to send some files to a third party, sharing those files with them via the Dropbox app is a good idea. All file data gets encrypted, regardless of whether you use 4G or Wi-Fi.

Thanks for reading today’s article.