How to Encrypt Data on Your Android and iOS Phones in 2024

Encrypting files on your Android and iOS devices is an excellent way to protect them from hacks, data breaches, and ransomware attacks. For most users, encrypting files in their mobile devices becomes a not-so-easy task.

However, encrypting files on your mobile devices can be easier than you think. It just requires the use of the right encryption app, and with right integrations to popular cloud storage providers to also encrypt your files on Google Drive, OneDrive, Dropbox etc.

In this blog post, let’s look at some very simple steps that you can use to easily encrypt files on your Android and iOS smartphones and tablets. We’ll explore the working behind the encryption, why you should need it for your sensitive files, and how it acts as a shield against cyber threats for your data.

Encryption is a process of scrambling data so that it cannot be read by unauthorized users. File encryption works by transforming the contents within a file into an indecipherable and unreadable format. This transformation involves an encryption algorithm and cryptographic keys to rearrange the contents of a file.

The algorithm has steps that perform permutation or rearrangement of file’s content, such as substituting, shifting, replacing, and mixing to scrabble the data. The cryptographic keys are used to determine the order or specific operations to be performed so that the entire encryption process can be repeated or reversed to decrypt a file.

Similar to a real-life padlock and key combination, only the specific cryptographic keys used during the encryption process can decrypt a file. Let’s better understand file encryption with a simple example: Suppose you have a file on your phone containing important and sensitive data, such as tax statements or financial records. Once encrypted, the file's contents will be transformed and scrambled, appearing something like this: ‘U2FsdGVkX1+Ww/kwN8Bn’ – a completely undecipherable string of characters that can only be decoded with the right key.

Watch the step-by-step video tutorial:

Follow this quick 3-step tutorial to encrypt files your Android and iOS smartphones:

STEP 1: Install AxCrypt from Google Play Store or App Store and sign into your account.

STEP 2: Tap the ‘Secure’ button with a padlock icon and select ‘Phone’.

STEP 3: Browse and select the files that you’d like to encrypt. Tap and hold to select multiple files.

And that’s it! Your files will be encrypted with an .axx file extension, and will appear on the ‘Recent Files’ tab under the menu strip. To open a file, just tap on any of the listed files directly from the main screen, or tap the ‘Open Secured’ button and select a file. To permanently decrypt a file, tap on the ‘Stop Securing’ button and select the file that you’d like to decrypt that has the .axx file extension.

When you open a file to view or edit, it only creates a temporary decryption process, and any changes made to the file will automatically be re-encrypted.

AxCrypt can also automatically encrypt and sync files on your Windows and Mac, and on your Google Drive and OneDrive accounts, so that you can access and edit them on the go on your phone.

1. 🔒 Protect Personal Photos,Videos and Files: Encryption adds an additional strong security layer to your files on your Android and iOS devices, providing a secured space for files and reducing the risks associated with keeping the data on phones.

2. 🔒 Data Privacy: Encrypted files on your Android and iOS devices are secured with an extra layer of privacy, making sure that only authorized users with the decryption key can access the sensitive information, and giving you a peace of mind for your data.

3. 📤 Secure File Sharing: Encrypted files allow secure sharing, ensuring only authorized recipients can access and decrypt the content.

4. 🛡️ Data Breach Shield: During the events of a devastating data breaches or a hacking attempts, encrypted files on your devices are unreadable to attackers without the decryption key, saving you from unprecedented time, data, and financial losses.

5. 🪪 Physical Theft Protection: If your Android or iOS device is stolen, encrypted files act as a crucial safeguard. Without the decryption key, stolen files remain useless and cannot be opened or viewed. This ensures a robust theft protection measures for your phones.

File encryption for your smartphones acts as a first line of defense against cyber attacks. It is the recommended method of data security by renowned institutions like NIST, IBM, Microsoft etc. to protect valuable data at rest.

It’s also important to choose a robust file encryption software which ensures that your Android and iOS devices are equipped with the powerful measures to protect your sensitive data effectively. Whether it's personal files, photos, videos, financial documents, or sensitive business data, encryption ensures that even if someone gains unauthorized access to your phone, your data remains unreadable and protected.