Perhaps you just visited a website or downloaded an app you don’t fully trust on your iPhone and wonder if your iPhone can get infected with a virus.

Well, the truth is that iPhones can get infected with viruses but in very rare cases.

In this article, you will get to know how your iPhone can get infected with a virus through apps or websites and how you can get rid of viruses or other malware apps from your device.

Also, you will be exposed to some signs that would give you a heads-up whenever your iPhone has been infected with a virus.

So, come with me!

Can iPhones Get Virus From Apps?

Yes. iPhones can get viruses from apps, but it’s rare.

The reason why it is extremely rare for your iPhone to get infected with viruses from apps is due to the fact that Apple only allows iPhone users to download apps from the Apple store.

Basically, Apple has already scrutinized the apps in the store.

Although, some malware apps have found a way of breaking into the app store in the past. So to avoid issues like this in the future, there might be a need to get an antivirus on your phone.

But when you jailbreak your iPhone, you’re giving it more freedom to download apps from other stores.

Doing this may look smart because you now have the freedom to use other app stores aside Apple store, but you might be doing yourself a great disservice by exposing your iPhone to potential virus threats from these unknown apps.

What about websites? Can your iPhone contact viruses from them?

Can iPhones Get Virus From Websites?

Just like the apps, it’s extremely rare for iPhone users to pick up viruses while browsing through websites, but the possibility of picking up a virus is not completely down to zero.

Apple always updates its iOS operating system to ensure that there are new security features that protect your iPhone.

Failure to regularly update your iOS operating system is putting your iPhone at risk of picking up viruses while browsing through a series of websites.

This is because Apple is always on the lookout for loopholes for potential virus attacks, thereby adding extra security walls and features to the updated iPhone operating system to ensure that your device is protected.

Now, when your iPhone gets infected with a virus, what are the signs you should look out for?

Alarming Signs That Your iPhone Has Been Infected With Virus

Just as a human being would give symptoms whenever he or she is infected with a virus, your iPhone also has the tendency to give some alarming signs whenever it has been infected with a virus.

When infected with a virus, your iPhone will start giving you some signs and signals which you need to watch out for. So, here’s how to know if your phone has a virus:

• Your iPhone begins to consume too much data: If you’re not using apps that consume so much data, like Netflix, and you discover that you’re consuming so much data on a daily basis, this could be a sign that your device is infected. In order to be sure of this, go to your settings and check which app consumes the most data.
• Your battery begins to drain much faster: Due to the transfer and upload of data done by these malware apps, it tends to drain your battery faster. Also, when multiple malware apps are installed in the background, the battery begins to drain faster.
• You get pop-ups when you’re not using your browser: Basically, you shouldn’t see any pop-ups on your device when you’re not using your browser. Getting pop-ups at this time could be a sign of a virus.
• When you see apps you never downloaded: when you start seeing apps that you didn’t download on your iPhone, then it is a sign that your device is vulnerable to viruses.
• Your iPhone begins to overheat: These malware apps begin to overuse your iPhone memory, which makes your device overheat.
• Your iPhone apps begin to misbehave: When your day-to-day apps do not function properly anymore and begin to misbehave, it’s usually the virus that is making it malfunction. So it’s a sign of a virus.
• Your iPhone begins to crawl: When your device begins to crawl instead of running, which makes it work extremely slowly, then this is a sign of a virus.

When you have the virus on your iPhone already, is it possible to remove it?

Yes, it is possible to remove viruses from your iPhone, and here’s how.

How to Get Rid of a Virus From Your iPhone

When you notice any of these alarming signs on your device, it is important you take the following steps to remove all malware apps from your device and also clear out all viruses.

• Delete any app you didn’t download: Make sure you delete any app that you discover is on your device but you didn’t download it
• Go to the Settings app

• Go to General and click on it

• Click on transfer or reset

• Click on erase all contents and settings.

After all contents and settings have been erased, you can now decide to set up your iPhone just like new, or you can decide to restore your backup.

When you want to restore your backup, you can either do it from an iCloud backup or from a local backup. Make sure you choose a backup based on the most recent backup.

Then, follow the step-by-step instruction.

Here is a simple step-by-step process to back up your iPhone to your computer.

How to Backup Your iPhone on Your Computer

When you reset your iPhone, any data that is not backed up will be completely wiped out. So there is a need to back up your data to the most recent one.

How to Backup Your iPhone Using Finder On macOS Catalina

Here’s how you can back up your iPhone using finder if you have updated your Mac to Catalina or any recent software.

• Use a USB cord to connect your iPhone to your Mac
• Click on the finder and tap your iPhone

• Tap on general, then click on back up all of the data on your iPhone to this Mac. It is safe to click on encrypt local backup in order to protect the data on your iPhone

• Tap backup now to begin backup

How to Backup Your iPhone Using iTunes on macOS Mojave

Here’s how to back up your device if you’re using macOS Mojave or an earlier version.

• Use a USB cord to connect your iPhone to your computer and open iTunes
• Follow the step-by-step process on your screen
• Click on your device in the finder window
• Tap on restore backup and let it restart

There you have it! Your iPhone is restored and set up as new.

Now that you know how to get rid of these viruses from your iPhone, there is a need to also know how to prevent contacting these viruses in the first place.

How to Protect Your iPhone From Viruses

Generally, iPhones are so protected that it’s really rare to pick up any virus if you didn’t break any rules as regards protecting your device.

And one of the most important rules is that you shouldn’t jailbreak your iPhone by giving it the freedom to download apps from other app stores.

The apps on the Apple store have been checked and scrutinized properly to prevent any malware apps from being on the store.

So, when you jailbreak your iPhone and you start downloading apps from not-too-trusted stores, you are making your device vulnerable to picking up viruses.

Also, it’s important to always update your iPhone operating system. This is because it allows Apple to add an extra security layer to your device, which would protect your iPhone from picking up any virus when browsing the web.

The easiest way to keep updated is to ensure that you turn on automatic updates. With this, your iPhone would update on auto-pilot and automatically add the extra protective layer to your device.

You can turn on automatic updates by going to your iPhone’s settings, tapping on general, and launching software updates.

Then make sure you turn on automatic updates, and voila! It keeps updating on auto-pilot.

Moreso, you can install an iPhone anti-virus security app that would help you block ads so as to browse different websites peacefully without the fear of picking up viruses. These anti-viruses can scan and update your device without draining its battery or slowing it down.

Also, these anti-viruses filter spam messages and prevent phishing attempts. Some of these are Norton mobile security, Avira, Clario, TotalAV, Panda security, Webroot mobile security, Bitdefender mobile security, and many more.

Wrapping up

In this short guide, you have seen how viruses can infect iPhones, even if it is extremely rare because of the security measures that are used by Apple.

You also got to see how jailbreaking is putting your iPhone at risk and making it vulnerable to some of these malware apps.

Therefore, there is a constant need to keep updating your iPhone and also be watchful in protecting your device.

Furthermore, if you want to add some additional security layer to protect your device, some tested and trusted mobile security apps have been discussed in this guide.

All these would equip you with the capacity to protect your iPhone without any fear of being infected with viruses.

Watch out for our next article!