It’s a misconception that Apple devices don’t need antivirus software. Yes, your iPhone iOS has built-in security features, but they’re not typically robust enough to protect you from all threats.
Viruses and other malware aren’t the only threats to your iPhone security. It’s a scary world out there where hackers are getting malware into the Apple App Store and targeting iPhone users with all kinds of online scams, or spying on your internet activity while you use public wifi connections. These days, it’s worth the extra money to protect your iPhone with an antivirus app.
There’s Malware in the App Store
Yes, Apple puts apps in the App Store through a rigorous testing process to ensure that they’re free of malware. But sometimes that process isn’t enough. Malicious apps have been found in the App Store, and some of them are pretty popular apps from seemingly reputable developers. They include such apps as PDF Reader from Xu Lu, Word Writer Pro from Netozo Limited, and Screen Recorder from Safe Harbor Technology L Ltd.
You need a comprehensive antivirus program to protect you from malicious app store apps. You might be running malicious apps that you downloaded from the App Store and not even know it. Malicious apps could appear to be legitimate and to come from legitimate developers, and they may even do the thing they’re claiming to do – but they’re still watching your activity and stealing your information. You can’t be too careful when it comes to keeping malicious software off your phone, and it seems that these days you really do need an antivirus program for your iPhone to keep it safe from malware.
Malware Isn’t the Only Threat Anymore
Downloading a malicious app from the App Store or picking up a virus while you’re surfing the web aren’t the only threats anymore. These days, you also have to contend with the threat of being targeted by a scammer, and that’s something that the security features built into iOS aren’t equipped to handle. Those built-in security features are restricted largely to carefully sandboxing apps so they can’t steal information from one another or otherwise affect each other in operation. There’s nothing in the iOS that will protect you from getting a phishing email, but many antivirus programs for iOS do include email spam filters to keep you from being targeted by scams.
You might think an email spam filter isn’t necessary. You might think that you know very well how to identify a scam in your email or DMs, and you might be right. But these scams are getting more sophisticated so it’s getting harder and harder to tell a legitimate email from a phishing email. Scammers are even using artificial intelligence (AI) to spoof people’s voices – so they could call you up and pretend to be a friend or family member in trouble, for example. It takes only a moment of weakness to succumb to one of these attacks, so you need an antivirus suite that can protect you with email filters and web protection.
Secure Your Privacy and Identity
In 2023, your identity is probably the most valuable thing you’ve got. If you use an antivirus for your iPhone, you can get identity protection features including dark web monitoring, Social Security account monitoring, credit monitoring, and identity theft assistance and insurance. You’ll be much less likely to be targeted by identity thieves and if your identity is stolen, you’ll have help clearing up the damage.
You probably also place a high value on your privacy, which you sacrifice every time you go on the web without using a virtual private network (VPN). If you use public wifi networks a lot, it’s especially risky to go online without a VPN. Not using a VPN means that hackers can see all of your activity online and glean a lot of valuable information about you in the process. A good antivirus program for iPhones and iPads would include a VPN to protect your online activity.
Practice Better Password Security
If you’re one of those people who uses the same password for every one of your online accounts, it’s time to beef up your password security. You may not realize it, but poor password security is just as big of a security risk as going without antivirus is. If you’re using the same password for multiple accounts, anyone who gets the password info for one account now has access to all your accounts. A good antivirus program for your iPhone will come with a password manager to help you improve your password security.
Is your iPhone safe from malware? Probably not. Buy an antivirus suite designed for iPhones and protect yourself from emerging malware threats.
