The Android Settings Worth Changing on Day One

A new Android phone is ready to make calls, take photos and show adverts. It is not necessarily set up to protect your information in the way you would choose.

The first hour is a good time to fix that. You do not need to turn every switch off or spend the afternoon reading menus. A few decisions make a real difference, and most can be changed later if they prove annoying.

Menu names differ slightly between Samsung, Pixel and other Android phones. When an instruction does not match your screen, open Settings and use the search box. Search for words such as “permissions”, “backup”, “advertising”, “updates” or “Find My Device” rather than hunting through every menu.

Put a proper lock on the phone first

Your lock screen protects more than the handset. A person holding an unlocked phone may be able to read messages, approve account recovery prompts, see payment cards or change security settings. Start here before signing into everything else.

Search Settings for screen lock. Set a PIN, password or pattern that is not obvious. A six-digit PIN is a sensible minimum. Avoid your birth year, postcode, or a neat sequence such as 123456. A longer PIN or password is stronger, but it also has to be something you will actually use.

Add biometrics, but keep the PIN strong

Fingerprint unlock is usually the best balance of security and convenience. Register the finger you naturally use to hold the phone, then add a second if helpful. Face unlock can be convenient too, although its security level varies by phone. Treat it as a shortcut, not a replacement for the PIN behind it.

Decide what the lock screen can reveal

A locked phone can still give away a surprising amount. A delivery code, bank alert or the first line of a private message can appear while it sits face-up on a desk. You may want notifications, but not their contents.

Search for lock screen notifications, or open Notifications and find the lock-screen options. Most phones let you show all content, hide sensitive content, or show no notifications at all.

Hide sensitive content is a useful middle ground. You still see that an alert arrived, but another person cannot casually read it. If one app is too revealing, open its notification settings and turn off lock-screen notifications just for that app. Messaging, email, banking and authentication apps are good places to check.

Give each app only the access it needs

Search for Permission manager, or go to Apps, choose an app, then open Permissions. Review location, camera, microphone, contacts, photos and videos, nearby devices and notifications.

Choose “while using” for most location requests

For apps that genuinely use location, choose Allow only while using the app. This suits maps, ride-hailing, local weather and a camera app that tags photos. It prevents the app from continually requesting your location after you have finished.

Allow all the time is for the smaller group that works in the background: location sharing for a family member, some safety tools, or a fitness tracker recording a long walk. Give it deliberately, not because the first prompt made it sound compulsory.

Be firmer with the microphone and camera

Deny microphone access unless an app needs to record sound, make calls or use voice features. Deny camera access unless it needs to take photos, scan a code, join a video call or verify something visually. Allow access only while using the app when that choice is offered.

Some apps will nag, disable a feature or show a gloomy explanation when you say no. That does not automatically mean the permission is necessary. If a core feature truly depends on it, you can make an informed choice. The trade-off is a little friction for less routine access to your phone’s sensors.

Reduce advertising tracking without expecting magic

Android includes advertising controls that can reduce how an advertising identifier is used for personalised ads. They do not remove adverts, and they do not stop every company learning anything about you. They are still worth setting because they limit one routine form of cross-app targeting.

Search Settings for Ads, Advertising ID or Ad privacy. Depending on the phone and Android version, you may see an option to delete or reset the advertising ID, plus controls for ad personalisation or ad topics. Turn off personalised advertising where it is offered, then delete or reset the ID.

Resetting gives apps a new value to associate with your device. Deleting it is the stronger option where available. Neither erases account information you have already supplied to individual services. Think of it as closing one label on the box, not emptying the box.

Make loss, breakage and updates less painful

Backup and device-finding settings are dull right up until the day they are the most useful settings on the phone. Search for backup and make sure Google Backup is enabled for the Google Account you expect. It can save selected device data, app data, contacts, call history, messages and settings, depending on the phone and apps you use.

Turn on Find My Device before you need it

Search for Find My Device and turn it on. The phone generally needs power, internet access and suitable location settings to report its position or receive a remote command. Check that the right Google Account is selected, and sign in to the service from another device once so you know where to go.

It can help you locate, ring, secure or erase a lost phone. It cannot guarantee recovery, and remote erasure is a last resort. Set it up quietly now rather than learning its menu while retracing yesterday’s bus route.

Leave automatic protection working

Search Settings for system update and install anything waiting. Then look for an automatic download or install option. Some phones install overnight; others ask you to confirm a restart. Give the phone a regular chance to update over Wi-Fi and with enough battery.

In the Google Play Store, tap your profile picture, then Settings and Network preferences to check Auto-update apps. Updating over Wi-Fi is sensible if mobile data is limited. In the Play Store’s Play Protect section, leave app scanning switched on. If you install apps outside the Play Store, only allow a source you trust and turn that permission off afterwards. “Free premium app” is not a useful description of an app’s intentions.

Keep background apps and unwanted extras in line

Search for battery optimisation, background usage limits or app battery usage. On Samsung, you may also see sleeping and deep sleeping apps. Start with apps you barely use. Restrict their background activity, put them to sleep, or remove their notifications.

Do not restrict everything. Leave important messaging, alarm, security, health and navigation apps alone unless you are prepared to test them. If an app needs fast alerts and they start arriving late, return it to the default setting. Battery life is useful; missed messages from a childminder are not a bargain.

Open Settings, search for Apps, choose an unwanted app and look for Disable. Disabling stops the app running, hides it from the app drawer and usually removes its updates. It is safer than trying to remove system software, and you can enable it again later.

• Pre-installed games, game hubs and promotional folders you will not use.
• A duplicate browser, email app, calendar or cloud storage app after choosing your preferred one.
• Manufacturer news feeds, shopping apps, social-media apps and trial services you do not want.
• Carrier entertainment or account apps, if you do not use them to manage your plan.

Leave core services alone if you are unsure. Phone, Messages, Settings, Google Play services, the system launcher and components with vague technical names can be important. There is no prize for disabling the most things. The goal is a quieter phone that still works when you need it.

What to do this week

1. Set a strong screen PIN, add your fingerprint and hide sensitive lock-screen content.
2. Review location, microphone and camera permissions for the apps you installed first.
3. Turn on Google Backup and Find My Device, then check the correct Google Account.
4. Install waiting updates, leave Play Protect on, and disable pre-installed apps you will not use.

You do not need a perfectly locked-down phone. You need one whose settings match the way you live: protected enough for the information it holds, quiet enough to use, and practical enough that you do not immediately switch the safeguards back off.