iOS Is More Secure Than Android

Let’s get this out of the way: in my not-so-humble opinion, iOS is way safer than Android.¹ Unlike Mac OS vs. Windows, the difference between these mobile operating systems is significantly starker. Google is doing some fantastic work in the realm of security, don’t get me wrong. But the Android ecosystem is fundamentally different than that of iPhones, and those differences make Android phones a lot harder to secure.

When Apple came out with the iPhone, the company was really in the driver’s seat. Steve Jobs knew that this device was going to completely change the smartphone world, and he managed to get all the major cell phone carriers to give him maximum control over the software on this device. The problem with Android is not that it’s not secure. The problem is that Google gave too much control over the software to the cell phone manufacturers and service providers. I’m sure there were business realities at play here. Perhaps the cell phone folks felt burned by Apple’s control over iOS and demanded more ability to control the Android OS on the devices they sold. So, you could argue that this isn’t really Google’s fault. But however it happened, the cell phone makers and cellular service providers are an integral part of the supply chain and serve as gatekeepers all software updates to Android phones. As recently as a couple years ago, a study found that almost 30 percent of Android phones weren’t even capable of getting the latest software. Even if the phone makers and service providers want to allow the updates, they have to go through a lengthy process of testing the changes on each device first.

Google has made some changes to Android that will address these problems, but because of the previous problem, it will work only on the very latest phone models. It could be years before most Android phones will be able to stay as up to date as Apple iPhones. A notable exception would be Google’s own Pixel smartphones. In this case, Google is in full control of both the hardware and the software (much like Apple), allowing Google to keep these phones updated with the latest security software and fixes.

iOS Is More Private Than Android

While the security issues are important, to me the real difference between Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android operating systems is privacy. There’s just no comparison: Apple wins hands down. There are two reasons for this. First, Apple’s iOS is a very closed ecosystem, meaning that Apple exerts extreme control over what apps it will allow to run on the phone and what those apps are allowed to do when you can run them. This control is a source of major frustration for a lot of people. They want to be able to do whatever they want to do, even if that means taking more risks. You can have a spirited and healthy debate over the freedom and control aspects here, but the upshot is that Apple’s closed system and restrictive permissions ultimately give you, the user, more protection from malicious and prying apps.

The other reason is that Google is an advertising company. Google’s business model is tied directly to knowing as much about you as possible. It’s a pure conflict of interest that I just can’t reconcile, and it’s the same reason I can’t recommend Google’s Chrome browser. While I firmly believe that Google is doing great things in the realm of security, it has shown time and time again that it will go to insane lengths to track everything you do to command top dollar for its advertising.

Apple is going even further to protect your privacy with the coming release of iOS 14. While iOS already allows you to deny your location information to any app, or to only share your location when the app is the foreground app, iOS 14 will now give you the option to only share your approximate location (within about 10 square miles). You can also limit which photos an app can access, install of all or nothing. Apple is adding a new indicator light to tell you when your camera or microphone is in use by displaying a little green or orange dot at the top of the screen (respectively). And Apple will also be instituting a transparency feature that gives every app a sort of "nutrition label" for privacy, basically forcing app makers to distill their privacy policies down to simple icons.

Wireless Madness

While laptop and desktop computers have their share of wireless technologies, smartphones have more. Modern cell phones have Wi-Fi, cellular data, Bluetooth, near-field communication (NFC), and now even wireless charging. Every one of these wireless interfaces presents a potential chink in your smartphone’s armor—a gap that will allow the bad guys a way into your phone. Let’s quickly review each one.

For Internet access, your smartphone has two options: cellular data and Wi-Fi. Cellular data service comes with nearly every smartphone service plan. They usually sell it to you in monthly chunks of gigabytes (GB), with steep fees for exceeding your limits (unless you opt for the expensive “unlimited” plan). Cellular data is your default connection to the Internet from a smartphone and should be available in most populated areas. But because you are charged for what you use, you have to be somewhat careful about how you use it. Regular email and web surfing is usually fine, but you wouldn’t want to binge-watch your favorite Netflix series using cellular data, even if you have an unlimited plan (most “unlimited” plans will start throttling or limiting your data usage after a certain point). Video services (YouTube, FaceTime, Netflix, etc.) can eat up a lot of data.

So, what if you do want to catch an episode of your favorite TV show on your iPhone? That’s where Wi-Fi comes in. As we discussed in Chapter 2, Wi-Fi is a wireless networking technology, giving you access to the Internet at home, in coffee shops, hotels, airports, restaurants, and other people’s homes. Wi-Fi service is generally unlimited and much cheaper (or free). But as we’ve also discussed, public Wi-Fi hotspots are notoriously bad when it comes to security and privacy. If you’re just going to surf the Web or read emails, I recommend avoiding public Wi-Fi and just stick to using your cellular data plan. You can also use a virtual private network (VPN) service to protect your Wi-Fi traffic, but be aware that services like Netflix will now block you if you’re using a VPN (to prevent people from accessing their services from outside their home country).

Because the whole point of smartphones is to be unencumbered, they use wireless technologies for everything. This is where Bluetooth and NFC come into play. As we discussed in Chapter 2, Bluetooth is used to connect peripheral devices to your phone like headphones and keyboards without the need for pesky cords. NFC, on the other hand, is used for things like mobile payments and pairing of devices (sometimes Bluetooth devices). NFC tries to limit itself by physical proximity—hence the “near” part of near-field communications. The idea is that the user has to place the smartphone near the payment terminal or whatever; it can’t just connect while it’s in your pocket or purse. In reality, though, any radio frequency (RF) technology can work over longer distances in the right circumstances.

The last cord to cut is the power cord. Many smartphones (and other devices like the Apple Watch) have come up with clever ways to transfer power without cables. However, this usually requires very close proximity—like sitting on a special mat or stand—but hey, there are no wires! The appeal is that you don’t have to physically connect the power cord.

Unfortunately, all of these wireless technologies increase your cell phone’s attack surface—they’re just more avenues for hacking in. While these technologies seem fairly simple to use, they are quite complicated under the covers. To do what they need to do, they are quietly and constantly monitoring the airwaves for signals and often replying to wireless queries from other devices automatically. Most of these technologies require a unique wireless identifier to operate. But this has allowed some enterprising retailers and law enforcement types to track your device using this ID and, by extension, track you. Some stores have devices that monitor Wi-Fi and Bluetooth from phones to monitor your movements in their stores—when you enter, how long you linger in front of that sale rack, and when you come back to the store a few days later to buy something. They may or may not be able to tie that wireless ID to your name, but they know it’s the same person each time because the wireless ID of your phone doesn’t change. Actually, because of this very issue, modern Apple and Google devices create random wireless IDs, rotating them frequently—though it’s not clear how effective this really is at preventing tracking.

To Hack or Not to Hack

As we’ve said, smartphones can be much more restrictive on what applications you can run or even what settings you can change. Cell phone makers and cellular providers do this mostly for security purposes—trying to protect people from themselves. But they also do this because they want to protect themselves and their business interests, often at the expense of their customers. It should be no surprise then that enterprising hackers have found ways to circumvent these restrictions, and they’ve made them available to the public via easy-to-use tools that you can find all over the Internet if you take the time to look.

The process of circumventing your smartphone’s built-in restrictions is a form of hacking called jailbreaking or rooting . Like regular computers, smartphones have different levels of permissions. Unlike regular computers, the cell phone makers and cell phone service providers reserve the highest permissions for themselves. Needless to say, this rubs some people the wrong way. “I bought the stupid device. Why can’t I do whatever I want with it?” If you get the right phone and the right hacking tool off the Internet, you can gain full administrator privileges and do whatever you want. While this sounds very tempting, I’m here to tell you that it’s not a good idea.

If you recall, in Chapter 5 I strongly encouraged you to create and use a non-admin account on your computer. This follows the security practice of “least privilege.” You want to restrict what you can do in most cases to be the bare minimum, just in case some bad guy or piece of malware gains access to your account. By using a limited access account, you can limit the amount of damage that can be done if that account is hijacked.

This is the same basic philosophy at work on smartphones. Apple and Google have created elaborate permission schemes on their smartphones that are designed to let you do everything you need to do while simultaneously restricting the damage that can be done by a rogue application or service. While some of these restrictions are more for their benefit (or the cell phone service provider’s benefit), on the whole they are the best mechanism for protecting your data and your privacy. Removing this safety mechanism will allow you to do whatever you want…but it also opens the door for any other application on your device to do what it wants. While I think there’s a strong philosophical argument to be made in favor of removing these restrictions—and I hope in the future cell phone makers return more of this power to the user—right now it’s definitely safer for most users to leave these restrictions in place.

Privacy Matters

For me, privacy is far and away the most important topic related to smartphones today. These devices are with us almost every hour of every day and are in constant contact with the Internet. They know where we are, where we’ve been, who we know, who we talk to, how to access our bank accounts, what news we read, what we buy, what games we play, what pictures we like to look at, what we text and email, what websites we use, what’s on our calendar…the list is endless. Your phone probably contains or has access to credit card numbers, phone numbers, passwords, PINs, birth dates, passport info, and Social Security numbers. We keep all the information of our lives on our smartphones so that we can access it anywhere at any time.

According to a 2016 Pew poll, 28 percent of people still do not lock their smartphones with a PIN or other access control.² While I hope that number has increased since then, I don’t doubt that a majority of people still haven’t taken this most basic step to secure this treasure trove of information.

Many modern smartphones now come with the ability to unlock your phone using a fingerprint or a face scan. This presents an interesting dilemma. As we discussed in Chapter 4 on passwords, fingerprints and facial features are forms of biometric authentication. As opposed to something you know (a PIN or passcode), biometrics represent something that you are. PINs and passcodes are a pain in the butt; there’s no doubt. Having to enter even four digits to get into your phone all the time is annoying (and honestly, you should be using more than four). Using your index finger or face is much, much easier. But is it really secure?

Let’s consider fingerprints. First, realize that there are multiple ways that someone else can use your fingerprint. The most obvious way would be somehow compelling you to do it for them or knocking you out and pressing your finger to the sensor. But it turns out that it’s actually not that hard to pull a usable fingerprint from a smooth surface.

Second, there’s currently a distinct legal difference between a fingerprint or faceprint and a password or PIN. This is an evolving area of law, and it probably varies country by country, but biometrics have been viewed like a physical key. If law enforcement has a warrant to search your home, they can compel you to open the door with your key. But can they compel you to use your finger to unlock your cell phone? The court cases in the United States are literally all over the map. A 2014 case in Virginia ruled that cops can force you to use your finger to unlock a smartphone, but a 2019 case in California ruled that law enforcement can’t compel a fingerprint or face scan to unlock a phone. On the other hand, the courts so far seem to treat divulging passwords and PINs as a violation of the Fifth Amendment’s protection against self-incrimination, similar to the combination of safe.

So—as is often the case with security and privacy—you need to weigh the tradeoffs with respect to convenience. While it’s much more convenient to use your finger or your face to unlock your smartphone, it doesn’t really offer you any protection from law enforcement or a physical attacker. That’s probably not a concern for most people, however, meaning that in most cases, using biometrics to unlock your phone is a worthwhile trade-off between convenience and security (especially compared to not locking your phone at all). And both iOS and Android now have “lockdown” modes where you can quickly disable biometric access, requiring a PIN or passcode to unlock the phone.

Summary

Checklist

The cell phone market—particularly the Android phone market—is extremely fractured. By that I mean there are many variants of the Android operating system out there, not only in the underlying version of the operating system itself but also with respect to service providers. The cellular service companies like AT&T and Verizon often make their own customizations to the operating system. Even the smartphone manufacturers like Samsung and LG often customize the OS. This makes it very difficult to provide a definitive, specific step-by-step guide for doing anything on Android OS. Therefore, most of the advice in this checklist is somewhat generic. You may need to search the Web or talk to your cellular service provider to help you find the proper way to do these things.