Smartphone apps have changed the way we live our lives. Just imagine how convenient it is now to do your online banking transactions, get takeaway delivered, and know what grocery products are on sale with just a few clicks on your phone. The side effect of this continuous desire for more convenience is that we become so dependent on these apps that we tend to download every single one that has the potential to make our lives easier. And as the action of downloading apps becomes a regular occurrence, due diligence is thrown out the door.

With thousands of apps available in the App Store and Google Play Store, it’s hard to detect which of these apps are good and which of them are up to no good! There are plenty of apps out there that are filled with malware problems, and if you’re not careful, you might end up downloading a problematic app that may compromise your privacy or damage your smartphone in an instant.

For your safety and protection, beware of these types of apps and never download them on your smartphone:

Too good to be true

We do not live in a perfect world and there’s not a single app that can perform miracles for you! For instance, if you come across a medical app that claims to diagnose diseases, test your vital stats, and come up with the solution for treating your illness – avoid it at all cost! Would you entrust your health to a tiny piece of software that hasn’t physically heard your heartbeat? The answer is a big, resounding NO. Remember, if it looks too good to be true, it probably is.

Batch permissions

Some hackers may pry into your personal data by creating an app that would batch-request permission to access your phone’s sensors. Google tried to correct this issue by implementing granular app permissions in Android 6.0 Marshmallow, which forced apps to request permissions individually and give you the option to allow or deny access.

Low downloads and negative reviews

Before downloading an app, be sure to quickly read user reviews and check the number of downloads. If the score is too low and if you mostly see negative reviews, then it’s obvious that the app is problematic.

Too many ads

Let’s be clear, just because an app has too many ads doesn’t mean it is a bad app. There are a lot of developers out there that offer free apps, but they contain ad as a means for them to gain revenue. The problem is, there are others that are filled with spammy ads that may contain malware. Again, reading user reviews is one of the best ways for you to avoid this kind of app.

Know the developers

There are a number of apps that imitate the look and function of popular and legit apps.  If you come across two apps that look similar, but slightly different, a quick research on the developer will reveal which of the two is legit. One good way to test this is to search the email address of both developers and send an email to check if it is valid. Legit developers would most likely respond and answer whatever questions you have.