When we say “phone,” we mean Android phones and tablets. Since iOS is a closed system, there are no real viruses or malware targeting iPhones yet. But on Android, malware is common, and even antivirus apps are not always enough to catch everything. If your phone shows any of the symptoms below, you might be dealing with an infection.
🐢 Sluggish Performance
Malware often runs silently in the background. It uses up CPU power that should be available for your apps. As a result, your phone slows down. Apps freeze, startup takes longer, and even phone calls might experience strange dropouts.
🔋 Rapid Battery Drain
Viruses don’t just slow things down and they also drain your battery. If your phone is constantly overheating or losing power faster than usual, background processes could be to blame.
📢 Sudden Pop-Up Ads
No app should be showing you random ads when you're not even using the phone. If you’re seeing full-screen ads out of nowhere, you've either installed a suspicious app or your phone has been compromised.
📱 Apps You Didn’t Install
Check your app list. If you find something unfamiliar that you definitely didn’t install, that’s a major red flag. Unknown apps often appear after malware gets root access or piggybacks on another installation.
🚨 What to Do If Your Phone Has a Virus
The good news is that fixing a phone infection is not as complicated as fixing a PC. A few simple steps can usually get you back to normal.
Go to your app list and remove anything suspicious you didn’t install yourself.
Open battery settings and look for apps draining too much power.
Install a reputable antivirus and scan your phone.
If nothing works, reset your phone to factory settings. Just make sure to back up your data first.