How To Encrypt Your Android Phone Data

The murky battle between Apple and FBI has brought the issue of encryption in focus again. However, we are not going to take anybody’s side in this debate, but we will tell you how you can encrypt your data on your Android smartphone.

There are sensitive personal data on your phone such as videos, photos and emails. It would be damaging if they fall in wrong hands. Using a security code is the first step in the right direction; this is not sufficient. You should think about encrypting the data. Here is how you can do it.

Android
Encrypting data in Android phone is little complicated. Modern phones such as Google’s Nexus phones and tablets come with encryption enabled by default. All other Android devices having Mashmallow 6.0, for example Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge, has encryption features. You just need to add a security code or fingerprint to enable it. Follow the steps as given below:

Head to Settings
Click Security
Select Screen Lock
Create a security code

If your device is older, such as Moto X Pure and Galaxy S6, don’t get disappointed as you can do this manually. The entire process can take an hour to complete considering the quantum of data you have in your phone.

Head to Settings
Select Security
Click on Encrypt phone

The above method is slightly different in Galaxy S6:

Go to Settings
Then, go to Other Security Settings
Click on Encrypt phone

It’s also possible to encrypt your SD card data. Just head to Settings >Select Security, Followed by Encrypt External SD card. You can easily reverse this by going in Settings menu.
Though, encrypting your phone may seem an enticing option, but the method is bit different in each phone. Your device’s performance goes down after data encryption. Modern phones too are affected.