Call 2020 the Year of the Phish. “Phishing” is when cyber criminals try to extract your confidential information by sending a phony email or SMS text that appears to be from a trusted source. According to a new report by Lookout, a mobile security platform, 88 percent of US consumer phishing attacks in 2020 have targeted mobile devices. Why the uptick? The COVID-19 pandemic has more of us working at home, using our phones and tablets to keep in touch and attending virtual meetings.

If your internet connection suddenly gets slower, if you’re data consumption spikes, or if your battery life starts to sag, you may have been infected with a malicious app. It isn’t just the lack of built-in software protection that makes your cellphone so vulnerable. It’s also the small screen that makes it harder for you to be vigilant when, say, you receive a link via email or text that looks innocent but may not be.

Sometimes when you get an email alert from a legitimate vendor it doesn’t always display correctly on a mobile phone. On your desktop or laptop, simply hovering over said link will reveal the complete URL, allowing you to spot any telltale spelling or coding irregularities, like a shipping delivery notification from Fedex, but the link says Fedx, or amzon.com, not amazon.com; or an address lacking the all-important “https:” identifier. On a mobile device, you sometimes can’t see the entire link.

You may be wondering, are Android phones more at risk than iPhones? The short answer is no. Apple does have more safeguards when it comes to downloading applications, but a lot of these scams will identify what type of phone you’re on and cater a scam message to your operating system, in real time. The upshot? No matter what device you’re on, which brand or operating system, you’re going to need protection, now more than ever... and Norton Security Online can give it to you. Your data, privacy, and safety are too important—put them in tried and trusted hands.