New security features debuting with the upcoming release of iOS 16 seem to be luring in plenty of potential customers: According to a new survey, 33% of Android users are considering switching to iPhones because of what the new iOS has to offer.
And, of those who are mulling over the Android-to-Apple jump between smartphone brands, a full 45% say that the perception of Apple’s better data security tools are the main reason.
But does the iPhone warrant such a positive view from the security-conscious?
iOS Has LockDown Mode and Data Privacy Controls
The new statistics are from Beyond Identity and draw on a poll of 1,003 Americans covering mobile phone security habits and opinions, with a fairly even split of 505 Android-using respondents to 498 Apple phone users.
The new iOS 16 release will add features to stop spyware like a “Lockdown Mode” that limits or stops apps that might pose a security risk.
Apple has been rolling out additional data privacy options in recent years, too, giving users more control over what data they share with third-party apps. Just ask Facebook, which stated recently that it will lose $10 billion in 2022 as a result of Apple’s new data transparency efforts.
The feelings of security extend to specific Apple cloud services as well: 20% of iCloud Keychain users say they feel “extremely secure,” compared to just 13% of Google Password Manager users, while 27% of Apple users say they’re extremely secure with using iCloud, up from 22% of Google Drive users who say the same.
iPhones Users Report Few Data Breaches and More Data Recoveries Than Android Users
According to the new survey results, Apple’s users were more likely to report never experiencing a security breach. If they did see a breach, they still came out ahead, as they were 20% more likely to fully recover the data that was lost than Android users who suffered an attack.
iPhones weren’t completely perfect. Interestingly enough, they did go missing more frequently.
“However, Apple users may have felt a little too safe, as they were more likely to report regularly losing their phones—often as many as six or more times in the last six months.” – The survey
There’s no question that Apple’s winning the battle over public opinion, however, with both high preceptions of security and low reports of breaches. It’s tough to argue with those reported experiences. Still, we’ll give it a shot.
Does iOS have a VPN problem?
iOS has plenty of great data privacy and security features, and they won’t be going away any time soon. But the tech giant also has a history of scooping up data, and plenty of experts take a skeptical view that its approach to privacy is all its cracked up to be.
Worse, one just-released report dug into the iOS and found that a bug reported in 2020 still hadn’t been fixed. According to it, the current iOS prevents any VPN from fully encrypting all traffic. Essentially, no VPN is good enough that it can really be trusted on an iPhone or iPad.
That report was looking at iOS 15.6, so there’s a chance that Apple has patched up the vulnerability with the new iOS 16. But the bug was reported back when iOS 13 was the current system, and it hasn’t been resolved yet. Android VPNs, meanwhile, are still doing their job.
