Attacks on mobile devices have continued to climb sharply. According to Kaspersky's H1 2025 mobile threat report, attacks on Android smartphone users in the first half of 2025 were 29% higher than in the first half of 2024. What’s more, Kaspersky's 2025 annual report shows that banking Trojan attacks alone grew 56% year-over-year, driven by malware families such as Mamont and Creduz.
While these attacks don’t necessarily involve phone hacks, they demonstrate the vulnerability of mobile devices to external threats. In case your phone gets hacked, certain actions can help you minimize damage, protect your data, and regain control, but you need to be quick to stop the attack from spreading.
In this guide, we’ll show you what to do if your phone is hacked and offer advice on how to prevent hacks and other cyberattacks.
Common Signs That Your Phone Has Been Hacked
Malicious actors can employ various tactics to access your device, from SIM swapping to leveraging fraudulent apps, making it challenging to identify a phone hack. If you suspect your phone has been hacked or want to prepare for such a scenario, watch for these signs:
- Increase in pop-up ads: A spike in pop-up ads can indicate an adware infection. Common goals of these pop-ups are tricking you into installing fraudulent apps and providing sensitive information, or “warning” you about scams, and then urging you to react immediately to prevent damage.
- Battery drainage: Quick battery drainage, despite moderate phone use, can be a result of malware running in the background.
- Unexpected charges: A higher phone bill can indicate that hackers are using your device to send messages, subscribe to various services, or make unauthorized purchases.
- Unrequested two-factor authentication (2FA) codes: Notifications for 2FA codes you never requested can mean that someone is trying to access one of your accounts or make a payment.
- Inability to access your Apple/Google account: Being logged out of your Apple or Google account and unable to log back in could indicate that a hacker has taken control of it.
- Unfamiliar apps on your device: If you notice apps you didn’t install yourself, it could be a telltale sign that your phone has been compromised. Hackers sometimes install malicious apps in the background to track your activity or steal your data.
- Phone overheating: An unusually warm device could indicate malware is working in the background and straining the processor.
- Random restarts or shutdowns: Unexplained restarts or shutdowns at random times could be due to a virus or hackers trying to control your device.
What To Do if You Think Your Phone Has Been Hacked
In addition to privacy invasion, a phone hack can result in significant financial loss, inability to access your accounts, and identity theft. To prevent such severe consequences, an immediate and proper reaction is crucial. Here’s what to do if your phone gets hacked:
- Check if your accounts have been compromised
- Change your passwords
- Delete suspicious apps and files
- Install a mobile security app
- Perform a factory reset
1. Check if Your Accounts Have Been Compromised
Check your online accounts for unusual activity, including:
- Login attempts from unfamiliar locations or devices
- Unauthorized transactions
- Password change notifications
- Messages you’ve never sent
- Settings you haven’t customized
This step is particularly important for banking apps and accounts that hold your financial information (e.g., if you’ve linked your credit card information to a social media or e-commerce account). If you notice anything suspicious, immediately contact your bank to block your credit card and request a new one.
Another good idea is to inform your mobile carrier about the potential hack. They may be able to offer features such as fraud alerts or monitor your account more closely for unauthorized or unusual activity.
2. Change Your Passwords
Change all your accounts’ passwords to ensure hackers can’t access them. It’s crucial to use a different device for this as utilizing your hacked phone could enable malicious actors to see your new passwords or intercept your actions.
To make the process easier, use a reliable password manager. For added security, set up 2FA. This extra verification layer could make it impossible for hackers to access your accounts even if they know your password. If possible, avoid SMS-based 2FA as hackers could intercept your messages through SS7 attacks. Instead, leverage 2FA through authenticator apps or biometric authentication, which requires verification via your unique traits, such as a fingerprint or face.
3. Delete Suspicious Apps and Files
Malicious apps and files often include spyware or trojans that enable hackers to surveil your activity and steal personal and financial information.
To ensure your device doesn’t get compromised through fraudulent apps and files, perform regular checks of installed apps and downloaded files. If you notice anything suspicious or unfamiliar, immediately delete it from your phone.
4. Install a Mobile Security App
Advanced mobile security apps can monitor device security and prevent hacks and other cyberattacks to ensure your accounts and data are safe by:
- Scanning for and removing malware and malicious apps and files
- Identifying phishing attempts
- Monitoring your network connections
Some mobile security apps offer additional options for enhanced data protection and encryption, password management, and greater control if your device is stolen or lost.
Note that what these apps actually do depends on your platform. On Android, security apps can scan installed apps and files for known malware. On iOS, Apple's sandboxing means apps can't scan other apps or system files, so iOS security apps instead focus on features like phishing link blocking, scam SMS filtering, Wi-Fi safety checks, and dark web or identity monitoring. Both can add value, but iPhone users should understand they're getting protection at a different layer than the traditional “virus scan” framing suggests.
5. Perform a Factory Reset
Performing a factory reset should be your last resort; although it may sound drastic, it returns your phone to its original state, ensuring that there are no corrupt files or apps on it.
The steps for performing a factory reset differ depending on your mobile OS. If you use an Android, here’s how to complete a factory reset:
- Go to Settings
- Scroll down and click on General Management (or System, depending on your Android version)
- Select Reset (or Backup & Reset)
- Choose Factory data reset
- Tap on Erase all data and enter your password to confirm
iPhone users can follow these steps to perform a factory reset:
- Open Settings
- Choose General
- Scroll down and select Transfer or reset phone
- Tap on Erase all content and settings
- Choose Continue and confirm your decision by entering your iCloud password
Since a factory reset erases all your data, backing up valuable data is essential. Save irreplaceable photos, videos, contacts, and messages to a cloud platform or a computer. Avoid backing up apps or system data as these could be compromised.
iPhone vs. Android: Where the Steps Differ
The following table outlines the key steps for proactively protecting your device from being hacked, highlighting the differences between iPhone and Android security setups:
Device | iPhone (iOS) | Android |
Spyware detection |
|
|
Account compromise check | Monitor recent sign-ins, trusted devices, and account security settings on your Apple Account | Monitor recent activity, logged-in devices, security alerts, and connected services on your Google Account |
Removing suspicious apps |
|
|
Lockdown options | Enable Lockdown Mode at Settings > Privacy & Security > Lockdown Mode (for high-threat profiles) | Enable Advanced Protection at Settings > Security & privacy > Advanced Protection (Android 16+) |
How To Make Sure Your Phone Is Not Hacked: Prevention Tactics
Preventing a phone hack is much easier than dealing with its consequences. By applying specific prevention methods, you can minimize the risk of hacks and improve overall device and network security. Here is how to reduce your device’s susceptibility to hacks and cyberattacks:
- Use strong passwords
- Install apps from verified sources
- Update your operating system
- Set up SIM protection
- Use a VPN
- Choose a reliable mobile carrier
1. Use Strong Passwords
Despite the availability of infinite password variations, research shows that the most common password in the world is 123456, and it takes hackers less than one second to crack it. Weak passwords make it much easier for hackers to access your accounts, steal your data, and make fraudulent transactions.
To improve your device security and prevent unauthorized access, set up passwords by following these tips:
Don’t share your passwords with anyone, especially not over the phone as malicious actors could intercept them.
2. Install Apps From Verified Sources
Downloading apps from unreliable sources can allow viruses, malware, and spyware to enter and compromise your device. To prevent this, use only verified sources to install apps. For iPhones, that’s the App Store, and for Androids, that’s the Google Play Store.
Both digital content stores employ strict review processes to ensure the available apps are reliable and free of viruses. However, there have been occasions of malicious apps slipping through. For instance, Kaspersky found apps with the SparkCat trojan that steals cryptocurrency wallet data in both the App Store and Google Play Store.
For additional security, research apps and their developers before downloading them to your device. Check the reviews and understand the permissions a particular app requests to ensure it’s trustworthy.
3. Update Your Operating System
Hackers often search for security gaps in outdated iOS and Android versions and leverage them as entry points to your device. By failing to update your OS, you expose your phone to vulnerabilities and miss the benefits of the latest security patches.
The best way to ensure you’re running the latest OS version is to set up automatic updates. Here’s how to do it if you have an Android phone:
- Open Settings
- Scroll down and select Software update
- Tap on Auto download and choose Using Wi-Fi only or Using Wi-Fi or mobile data to select when your device will download updates
iPhone users can follow the steps below to set up automatic software updates:
- Go to Settings and choose General
- Tap on Software Update
- Turn on Automatic Updates
- Switch the toggle next to iOS Updates to ensure your device automatically updates to the latest software version
4. Set up SIM Protection
Hackers may try to steal your phone number and transfer it to another SIM card, a practice known as SIM swapping.
To prevent or at least minimize the risk of a SIM swap attack, set up SIM protection if your carrier offers it. Once you enable this, hackers won’t be able to port your phone number without the unique PIN or password.
5. Use a VPN
Public Wi-Fi networks are often poorly secured, making them particularly vulnerable to hacking. It’s best to avoid connecting to such networks, but if you can’t, use a virtual private network (VPN).
A VPN creates a secure connection to the internet, minimizing the risk of cyberattacks regardless of the network you’re using and preventing hackers from accessing your phone through it. Numerous VPN apps are available for both Android and iOS; check online reviews and app store ratings to find the one that suits your needs.
6. Choose a Reliable Mobile Carrier
Mobile carriers play a significant role in protecting your phone from hackers. Unfortunately, the major mobile carriers today often don’t prioritize security in their service.
The clearest recent illustration is from late 2024, when the FBI and CISA confirmed that the China-linked Salt Typhoon campaign had compromised Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, and Lumen, exfiltrating customer call records, intercepting calls and texts of targeted individuals, and accessing the systems carriers use to fulfill court-authorized wiretaps. This isn't an anomaly; it's part of a pattern of breaches at major carriers over the past few years.
Worse yet, most major carriers collect as much of your data as possible so that they can create detailed profiles of who you are and what you do, and sell that information to third parties, data brokers, and ad networks.
The good news is that a wave of innovative new players is reshaping the telco space. Cape is a mobile carrier that offers the same quality of cell phone service, with a unique focus on protecting your privacy and security.
Cape: The Carrier Built for Security and Privacy
Cape is a privacy-first mobile carrier designed to keep your communications safe from surveillance and misuse. Unlike traditional cell phone plan providers, our business model centers around providing you with premium and secure call, text, and data, rather than harvesting and selling your information.
Our service is built from the ground up with privacy and security at its core, offering unique features like:
Privacy & Security Feature | Description |
Cape doesn’t ask for your name, address, or Social Security number. We only collect the information necessary to provide service, and we retain that information for the minimum amount of time possible. | |
Traditional carriers rely on a fixed International Mobile Subscriber ID (IMSI) to connect your device to cellular networks. This is a vulnerability that lets carriers, advertisers, and bad actors identify and track your device. Cape lets subscribers automatically rotate their IMSI every 24 hours, making it infinitely more difficult to track you or your device. | |
Many services ask for your phone number, but sharing it exposes you to spam, scammers, data brokers, and a variety of other risks. VoIPs, on the other hand, don’t work with 2FA, cost extra, and aren’t encrypted. With Cape, you get two free additional SMS/MMS lines that are middle-to-end encrypted. | |
Most U.S. carriers store your call and text metadata for years, sometimes indefinitely. Cape is built to forget, so call data records (CDRs) are deleted after just 24 hours. | |
Cape nullifies the threat of SIM swapping by completely removing humans from the loop. During signup, you receive a 24-word phrase that generates a private key tied to your number. This effectively means that no one (but you) can move your number to a new carrier or device, not even Cape. | |
Legacy network protocols, like SS7, leave you vulnerable to hackers that can track your location, intercept your calls and texts, and steal sensitive information. Cape’s Network Lock relies on a proprietary signaling proxy to verify that your device’s physical location matches the network it’s trying to attach to. If we detect anything out of the ordinary, Cape automatically blocks the connection, nullifying the potential threat. | |
Traditional voicemail systems are outdated, unencrypted, and another security hole bad actors can exploit to gain access to your sensitive information. Cape encrypts all voicemails, ensuring only you can access them. | |
While roaming, your phone connects to local telecom providers to enable service. But, who knows who might be listening on the other end. Cape provides you with peace of mind by routing your traffic through our U.S.-based mobile core, ensuring your identity, data, and communications remain private and secure. |
Ditch Legacy Carriers: Get Cape Today
Cape is a “Heavy” Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO), meaning we own our mobile core and provision our own SIMs. This gives us full control over how accounts are authenticated and what data is collected (and for how long), and is how we are able to provide privacy and security features no other carrier on the market can offer.
Get started with Cape today and enjoy the peace of mind, knowing you are fully protected against scammers, hackers, bad actors, and other mobile threats.
To help protect more than just your phone, we’ve partnered with Proton. As a new Cape subscriber, you can choose between Proton Unlimited and Proton VPN Plus for just $1 for six months.
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