Must-Have iPhone Security Apps

Apple popularized the app-store concept and the iPhone and its companion store have gained a reputation for security over the years. While iOS on its own is quite secure, there

iphone-apps

Apple popularized the app-store concept and the iPhone and its companion store have gained a reputation for security over the years. While iOS on its own is quite secure, there are still plenty of security apps available to help fill in the gaps and give users a broad set of choices for securing their phones and sensitive data. Here are some of the most useful security apps to be found in the iTunes App Store.

  1. Find My iPhoneFIND MY IPHONE: Perhaps the most essential security/geolocation application for the iPhone, Find My iPhone, provided by Apple, allows users to track the location of their device. The app is key for users who either hope to retrieve their lost phone or erase any sensitive information that may have been left on a lost phone. Through a user’s iCloud account, the app displays lost devices on a map, can get them to play a sound if left nearby, can remotely lock devices and even erase their personal data.
  2. contactsproCONTACTSPRO: ContactsPro, available for both iPhone and iPad, allows users to hide selected contacts, photos and other information behind what they call an “unlimited” number of passcode protected areas.
  3. lookoutLOOKOUT: Another from the security/geolocation camp, Lookout – like Find My iPhone – is a free way for users to find their lost iPhone or iPad. The app allows users to back up and save their contacts, manage their device over the web and most importantly, find their device. The latest version of the app boasts a new function Signal Fire – which Lookout claims automatically saves the phone’s location when the battery gets low to better inform users where it may be.
  4. NQ Mobile VaultNQ MOBILE VAULT : Similar to ContactsPro, NQ Mobile’s Vault app allows users to hide pictures, videos and messages they don’t want others to see. The app is free, yet some premium functions, including a feature that photographs anyone who enters the wrong password on your phone can be available for $1.99.
  5. RSA Secure idRSA SECURID SOFTWARE TOKEN: RSA’s SecureID Token gives your iPhone a two-factor authenticator to deploy software tokens to other RSA resources like VPNs, WLANs and web apps on the go.
  6. Hotspot ShieldHOTSPOT SHIELD VPN: Hotspot Shield offers users an iPhone VPN alternative, allowing users to connect to the internet using Wi-Fi hotspots all while encrypting your traffic and hiding your IP address. The service also has its own spam, phishing and malware protection notifications.
  7. Gadget TrakGADGETTRAK: GadgetTrak offers users an alternative to Find My iPhone. Users can wait until after their phone has been stolen and log-in to their account on any browser to remotely enable their phone’s tracking. The service will show your phone on a map and even snap a photograph of the thief if the user requests it to.
  8. Firewall IPFIREWALL IP: Firewall IP is an “app” available only in the Cydia Store, a directory of applications for jailbroken iPhones. After ponying up $1.99, Firewall allows users to block outgoing connections (both TCP & UDP), analytic providers, ads and even which of your apps users want connecting while on a cellular network.
  9. iLOCALISiLOCALIS: Also exclusively available in the Cydia Store, iLocalis allows owners of jailbroken phones to keep track of their phones if they’re stolen or lost and also gives them the ability to create and restore remote backups, remote wipe data, make remote calls and activate remote call forwarding.
  10. Splash IDSPLASH ID: SplashID bills its app as a safe for users’ information – usernames, passwords, credit card data, account numbers and prescriptions can all be locked away under 256-bit Blowfish encryption. The app also offers an automatic password generator, backup/sync and manual IP address synchronization.
  11. Cisco Any ConnectCISCO ANYCONNECT: Cisco’s AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client gives its users an app to deploy encrypted network connectivity on the go. Using software developed by the OpenSSL Project and developers Eric Young and Tim Hudson, the app establishes a secure connection for TCP-based applications via Datagram Transport Layer Security (DTLS).
  12. JunosJUNOS PULSE: Another from the SSL VPN camp, JunOS Pulse allows users to connect to their VPN via Juniper Networks remotely. Using the JunOS Pulse Mobile Security Suite and this app, devices can be managed over the air, located, locked and wiped.
  13. The VaultTHE VAULT: Aptly named, The Vault acts as an encrypted storage service for your phone. The free app stores information like passwords, logins and photographs locally, instead of in the cloud.
  14. WickrWICKR: Billed as a secure and private messenger, Wickr offers military-grade encryption (AES 256 and RSA 4096) and lets users determine who can read their messages, where and for how long. The heavy-duty app destroys metadata from captured videos and photographs and encrypts and anonymizes messages between those who use the app.
  15. 1PasswordPro1PASSWORD PRO: This app allows users to securely store their website logins, passwords, credit cards and membership numbers through what the application calls “hardware-accelerated AES encryption” and auto-lock. The app will also backup data and synchronize your data with your Mac, or if you have it, Dropbox service.
  16. Spam ArrestSPAM ARREST: An extension of the Spam Arrest service – a service which sorts through e-mail, separating legitimate emails from spam – this app allows users to access their account directly from their iPhone and allows them to review unverified mail, providing they’ve purchased a subscription.
  17. Secure Folder ProSECURE FOLDER PRO: Secure Folder Pro allows users to store their photos, videos and contacts in a discrete, safe folder on their iPhone. The app – which uses either a dot lock or conventional four digit pin – even features a decoy duplicate app that can be used to confuse would-be iPhone thieves.
  18. Dot Lock ProtectionDOT LOCK PROTECTION: Dot Lock Protection gives iPhone users the ability to create a dot lock unlock pattern, displays a “break-in log” showing intruders’ attempts to access their phone and the ability to password protect any image on their phone.
  19. msecuremSECURE: Boasting over a million users worldwide, mSecure uses 256-bit Blowfish encryption to protect account numbers, usernames and passwords, features a password generator and an “optional self-destruct” feature if a hacker tries to access the phone.
  20. Silent PhoneSILENT PHONE: Silent Circle subscribers use the app Silent Phone for secure, encrypted peer-to-peer calling. Created by the founders of PGP (Pretty Good Privacy), Silent Phone utilizes ECDH-384 and AES 256 encryption for secure video and voice conversations.
  21. secumailSECUMAIL: SecuMail, albeit a bit pricey at $49.99, is a vital iPhone app for privacy advocates who use OpenPGP for corporate email. The app is a partial implementation of the OpenPGP standard, allowing the encryption, decryption, signing and verifying of messages.
  22. ChatsecureCHATSECURE: The open source messaging platform ChatSecure is based on the Cypherpunks’ Off-the-record protocol to enable secure conversation over ZMPP/AIM accounts. On the app’s site, Chris Ballinger, one of the developers says  the “project is *100% free* because it is important that all people around the world have unrestricted access to privacy tools.” All conversations are encrypted and the app is compatible with popular chat programs like Adium and Pidgin.
  23. Ben the BodyguardBEN THE BODYGUARD: Ben the Bodyguard, produced by Nerd Communications puts a fun spin on the normally stuffy security app. In this case, Ben is a “personal guardian for all your most sensitive and secret on-the-go data.” The app uses 256-bit AES encryption along with users’ passwords to hide photos, passwords, reminders and notes. Ben, a sinister looking bodyguard (who also happens to be a dead ringer for Jean Reno’s character in Léon: The Professional) walks users through password tutorials and explains how to better secure your phone.
  24. Black SMSBLACK SMS: Black SM, hides text messages behind a black chat bubble – obscuring any sensitive information from curious onlookers.
  25. Kaspersky DeblockerKASPERSKY DEBLOCKER: Kaspersky Lab’s Deblocker can help iPhone users generate unlock codes to remove cybercriminals’ pesky banners from their phone’s desktop.
  26. KasperskyKASPERSKY PARENTAL CONTROL: Kaspersky Lab’s SafeBrowser is a free app that filters out inappropriate sites (sites containing pornography, violence, drugs and other adult content) to help children have a more secure online experience while using iOS devices.
  27. DashlaneDASHLANE: Dashlane provides online shoppers with “completely secure” instant checkouts on their iPhones while a recent update can send users an alert if one of their web accounts has been compromised.
  28. MokafiveMOKAFIVE: Mokafive allows iPhone users to access to corporate files curated by their business’s IT department. Once accessed, files can be cached locally for use offline in what the company’s developer, Moka5, calls a LiveData container.
  29. StashSTASH: Stash, which comes in a free and $2.99 deluxe version, allows users to store their own media – photos, videos and documents privately. A decoy password can be used to lead to a decoy account while the app’s browser features its own private history, bookmark and cookie controls.
  30. eWalleteWALLET: eWALLET protects users’ passwords, usernames and PINs with 256-bit AES encryption, time out locks and now, optional backups to iCloud.
  31. iKeepPassiKEEPASS: German developer Karsten Fusenig’s iKeePass helps store iPhone users’ databases, app settings, configuration databases and other information. An iOS version of the popular Microsoft software password management utility KeePass, Fusenig likens the app to a “tresor,” or “vault,” in German.
  32. SNAP: Jason Beatty’s Snap is an acronym for Simple Network Area Prober. Tthe app can quickly scan the network around your phone and let you know what servers, routers and iPhones are nearby. For each device that Snap finds, you can also scan it for common services such as HTTP, remote login, AppleTalk, Microsoft networking, and many others.
  33. LastpassLASTPASS: LastPass, the popular password manager has a few iPhone apps. One, a premium version, offers all the functions a normal LastPass Premium service would offer. Users can log into their accounts en masse so the usernames and passwords are “seamlessly synced” to a users’ iPhone from a Windows/Mac/Linux machine via a Host Proof Hosting method.
  34. Last Pass WalletLASTPASS WALLET: A second LastPass app, LastPass Wallet acts a lot like a wallet – the app stores notes on users’ credit cards, PINs, along with photos and audio clips. An account can be set up independently or through a user’s existing LastPass account while their information is secured by secure cloud storage and local-only encryption and decryption via a PIN code prompt.
  35. Safe Eyes MobileSAFE EYES MOBILE: Safe Eyes Mobile, distributed by InternetSafety.com, deploys a safe online environment for children by subbing out Safari for a browser that filters certain types of content and syncing across PC, Mac and iOS.
Tips

Securing home security

Security companies offer smart technologies — primarily cameras — to protect your home from burglary, fire and other incidents. But what about protecting these security systems themselves from intruders? We fill this gap.