How To Secure Your Windows Phone ?

Find my phone 

This free service on www.windowsphone.com can locate, ring, or even erase your phone remotely, in case it falls into the wrong hands. All you need is a computer connected to the internet.

Set it up 

Before you can use Find My Phone, you’ll first have to create a Windows Phone account and then set up the service. On your computer, browse to www.windowsphone.com. In the top-right corner of the website 

you’ll see a picture of a phone. Hover over it with the mouse cursor, then click ‘Find My Phone’. This is the tool that allows you to map, lock or erase your phone remotely. When prompted, sign in with the same Microsoft account you used to sign in on your phone. You’ll be given simple instructions to set up Find My Phone.

Using it

In the ‘Find My Phone’ section of www.windowsphone.com, you can do the following:

› Check your phone’s location

You should see a map, which shows the current location of your mobile. If the location isn’t highlighted, click the ‘Find My Phone’ button above the map, or the ‘Refresh’ button.  You can print a copy if needed.

› Ring your phone 

On the ‘Find My Phone’ page, click ‘Ring’, then follow the instructions. Remotely calling your mobile in this way will make it ring loudly even if it is in vibrate mode. This is a great way of finding your phone if it’s hiding somewhere in your house.

› Lock your phone and show a message 

On the ‘Find My Phone’ page, click ‘Lock’, then follow the instructions. If you don’t already have a password set up on your phone, you’ll need to enter one now, which will be used to unlock the phone from now on.  You can also type a message to display on your phone’s lock screen.  Try entering an email address or phone number, so anyone who finds your phone can contact you.

How to Setup password on your phone?

A simple and effective way of keeping strangers out of your phone is to set a password. 

› Go to Settings, then ‘Lock + wallpaper’ 

› Flick the ‘Password’ switch to on, then enter your password or PIN in both the ‘New password’ and ‘Confirm password’ text boxes. Choose something memorable that no one else could easily guess 

› Tap ‘Done’ and your password is saved. You will need to enter this every time you wake your phone from hibernation

› Erase your phone 

This is a last resort if you think  you’ll never find your phone, or, like James Bond, you need to delete some sensitive information. On ‘Find Your Phone’, click ‘Erase’. Follow instructions to complete.

How to Update Windows Phone?

Windows Phone may already be wonderful, but Microsoft is constantly updating the OS to make it as user-friendly and feature-packed as possible. That’s where the system updates come in. These are basically little tweaks to the way your phone runs, often adding in fresh new tools and other benefits. Previously you would have to hook your phone to a PC to perform these updates when they were ready, but now you can receive them wirelessly for minimal hassle. Here’s how to quickly and easily update your phone.

Find the ‘Phone Update’ feature 

Phone Update is buried away in the settings menu: just look for the ‘Phone Update’ option and tap it.

Manual or automatic updates 

› In the Phone Update screen you’ll see a button that can be used to manually check for updates, along with a counter that tells you how long it’s been since the phone last looked for a system update 

› You’ll also see two options: ‘Tell me when updates are available for my phone’ and  ‘Automatically download updates if my data settings allow it’ 

› If you have the first option checked, your phone will periodically scan for new updates and bring up a message if anything is found. To disable this, simply uncheck the box. You will then have to manually search for updates by hitting the ‘check for updates’ button.

Downloading an update 

› If an update is found, it may download immediately if you have left the ‘automatically download updates if my data settings allow it’ box checked, depending on your network connection. Otherwise, you will be prompted to allow the update 

› Before performing an update, be wary that they can often be quite large files. To avoid hitting your data quota, we strongly recommend performing updates only when you’re connected to a Wi-Fi network 

› The download should take a few minutes. Your phone will reset and install the update when it has finished downloading. You’ll see two white gears turning while the update is being installed, then an ‘update done!’ message when it’s complete

Apps Tweaks For Windows Phone

SmartGlass

Remote control your Xbox 

SmartGlass is a companion application that lets you turn your Windows 8 device into a remote control and at times a second screen for your Xbox 360 games console. Download the app, connect your device and you can ditch the console’s controller for a touch- screen interface. Messaging your friends over Xbox Live also becomes much easier using the app, as you can use the touch-screen of your tablet or phone instead of navigating the on-screen keyboard via your controller.

How to activate SmartGlass... 

› Turn on your Xbox 360 

› Download SmartGlass from the Store 

› Access the app via your home screen or Games tile 

› Sign into SmartGlass 

› Nudge Remote and use your touch-screen to navigate your Xbox entertainment 

Swipe the screen 

› SmartGlass lets your fingers do the walking. Engage the remote function and what you swipe on your touch-screen device moves the menus on your Xbox. Tap the screen to select and use the coloured on-screen buttons to navigate your way around 

Check it out on your tablet, watch on your TV 

› You can browse Xbox Entertainment content on your phone or tablet’s SmartGlass app, then hit ‘Play on Xbox’ and watch it on your television 

Messaging made easy 

› Typing messages via the Xbox controller can take longer than you’d like, but using the touch-screen of your Windows 8 phone or tablet makes this experience much easier and more intuitive 

Two screens are better than one

› SmartGlass means you have two screens of content and some Xbox 360 games are SmartGlass compatible. For instance while playing Halo 4 and using the app you can browse your character’s stats while you play, such as your favourite weapons and number of kills. You can also get extra info, trivia and other titbits using the app

Usage Of SmartGlass

Xbox Music Store 

Explore new songs and artists, with millions of songs to choose from. A monthly Xbox Music Pass subscription gives you unlimited access to the entire Xbox Music library from your Windows Phone, tablet or on your Xbox 360. Use SmartGlass to navigate the service and extra information about the artist will display on your Windows 8 device as you listen 

Xbox Video 

Rent or purchase the latest episodes of your favourite TV shows or new movies through your Windows 8 device. You can even start browsing on your tablet then pick up where you left off on your TV. SmartGlass makes this service even easier to browse. Navigate the Store for the content you want, select it then hit ‘play to Xbox.’ Your phone or tablet can pause the action or you can swipe to the time you want using your touch-screen 

4oD Channel 

4’s catch up service is full of the most recent programmes and documentaries as well as an extensive archive of the channel’s classic shows spanning its 30-year history. Using SmartGlass you can navigate the series and episode lists in less time and with less fuss 

Internet Explorer 

You can navigate your Xbox’s internet  browser the same way you would on your phone  or tablet. Once you’ve connected SmartGlass to  the console, drag the pointer using the touch-screen, tap to select and even pinch to zoom for a closer  look at selected web pages. You can also tap the  web hub icon to see favourite pages, or the  mobile icon to open the webpage on your  phone or tablet 

Use OneNote for memos that instantly sync 

› Tap on the One Note tile

› Select the notebook you would like to add the note to and hit ‘+’

› If you’re writing a list, try the bullet-point option and, if it’s your to-do tasks, use the checkbox option to tick ’em off for that much-relished sense of accomplishment

› A picture speaks a thousand words, right? Add a photo to a note, either from your picture library or by taking one right there

› Save the note and it’ll automatically go to SkyDrive, where it will be accessible from anywhere with an internet connection

› You can view and edit shared notes too, including notebooks from Rooms

Streamline Facebook alerts Facebook birthdays and events automatically stream to your Calendar. To stem the flow of info: 

› Press the ellipsis and select ‘Settings’

› Scroll to the Facebook-tagged Calendar

› Tick ‘Only show Facebook events I’ve responded to’ or just swipe to turn it off entirely

Get your inbox down to zero Clear your mail by archiving or simply deleting 

› In your inbox, tap the second icon

› Tick the emails that you’ve dealt with

› Tap the rubbish icon for deletion, or the appropriate folder to move it to one of your existing folders

Turn off notifications in order to maintain focus 

› Go to ‘Settings’ then ‘Email + Accounts’

› You can manage notifications from all email and social network accounts from right here

Kid's Corner For Windows Phone

Kid’s Corner is perfect for parents who are happy to share their smartphones with their kids but who want to protect sensitive information like work emails and apps not suitable for their age group. It’s just like parental controls on your computer, and grants your children access only to the apps and features that you deem appropriate. They can personalise the Start screen themselves and make it their own, listen to music you’ve selected, view videos you’ve okayed and play games you want them too. This great feature gives you peace of mind when it comes to sharing the technology you enjoy with the people you love.

Note: 

Make sure you add a passcode to your phone. Your kids won’t be able to access your home screen from Kid’s Corner – unless the phone goes into standby mode, which causes it to revert to your profile. Putting a passcode on your profile means there is no way they can navigate to your content.

For You Child's Phone

If your child uses a Windows Phone you can set up My Family  to control what apps and games they are allowed to access. 

› Go to windows phone.com on your PC 

› Tap Explore then My Family, and sign in with your Microsoft account

› Click Get Started, then Go and enter your child's Microsoft account and password

› Tap Fix It to get your child's name into My Family 

› Next to their name, you can now click Change settings and select whether they can download paid-for apps (or any at all) 

› You can also set a game rating filter to limit the types of games your child can view and download

How to set up  Kid’s Corner 

› Tap the Kid’s Corner tile 

› Turn the feature on 

› Nudge the apps, games and media you think appropriate 

› Press the ‘launch kid’s corner’ button and you’ll see its home screen

› Nudge ‘customise’ to name the home screen, select a background and accent colour or let your little ones do it for themselves

Colourful home screen 

› Choose a cute picture for your kid’s lock screen, or better yet let them choose or take their own using the phone’s camera

Plenty of choice 

› Your kids can rename their Kid’s Corner page to whatever they like at any time, or change the colour of their Start Screen

Game on 

› Probably the number one reason your kids love your smartphone is the games you’ve downloaded. Using Kid’s Corner you can screen which games they are allowed to play and keep them happy for a few more hours

People Hub For Windows Phone

A new feature for the Windows Phone 8 People Hub is the ability to create a ‘Room’. This is the perfect way to keep in touch with the most important people in your life quickly and simply. You can create your own Room via the People Hub and it’s an invitation-only space on your phone where you can share a private calendar, group chat, videos and photos with other members.
Every Room member can see the chat session, each other’s messages and you can share calendars, photo albums and locations if you’re meeting up. Rooms are a perfect way for families, work colleagues or recreational groups to keep in touch with minimal fuss.

Five easy steps to setting up your own Room... 

› Access the People Hub 

› Swipe along to the together page and nudge the plus sign 

› Add new Room

› Name your Room – this is what will show up on each member’s phone 

› Use to your heart's content

Room Chat 

› Why send individual texts when you can send a group chat message that all members of the Room can view? All members of the Room will be able to see each other’s messages and replies so everyone stays in the loop 

Shared Calendar 

› Every Room comes with a shared calendar which everyone in the group can update and view. Any changes or additions are automatically synced to all members’ devices 

Share your photos 

› Your Room also comes with its own shared photo album. Nudge the plus symbol on the photos page to upload a new picture to the group’s album. You can even save the picture to your phone or set them as your lock screen 

Add notes 

› You can create to do lists for your Room’s members via OneNote as well. Great for flatmates to delegate weekly chores, shopping lists and shared tasks for that week 

Change your background 

› Anyone in the group can change the Room’s background image. Simply nudge ‘...’ and select to change the background. You can choose any image stored on your phone, saved to SkyDrive or from your Facebook albums

Customising Lock Screen Of Windows Phone

Windows Phone 8 adds far more to the lock screen than its predecessor – and it’s probably one of the most interesting lock screens of any smartphone too. The wallpaper can be customised to display a photo and live wallpaper, as well as a constantly changing series of Facebook photos.

Personalise your alerts 

Then there are the six different apps whose alerts you can bounce to the lock screen. Without inputting a PIN or even unlocking the phone at all,  you can instantly see what messages, alerts or calls you have waiting, and even add next-level content such as the details of a Facebook notification or text message.

What’s the app you check the most frequently?

› You can choose Calendar, Facebook, an email account, Messaging or the dialer to show a detailed status › This means you can view a full text message, or full details of your next appointment, or the latest Facebook notification in full without having to unlock your phone 

› Pick the one you check the most to minimise 

Get updates from more apps as well 

› Windows Phone 8 supports up to five secondary notifications from Facebook, Games, email, Messaging and dialer 

› Pick these to show a ‘quick status’ in the lock screen settings 

› If you prefer a cleaner home screen, select one or more slot to show ‘None’

Adjust how long it takes the screen to dim 

› To save battery, set the screen to time out and lock itself after 30 seconds › Tap the ‘Screen times out after’ box to customise the time

Set a password 

› Scroll to the bottom and flick the password switch to On

Utilitiy Apps For Windows Phone

Flashlight-X (Free) 

Take advantage of your phone’s LED flash and use this app to keep it on in dark, dark situations. It turns on instantly and just keeps  on going...

SuperTimer Free (Free) 

Got a roast, cake or other bun in the oven? Run a timer in the background while you use your Windows Phone for something else. You can also set a message to remind you what the timer was for, anyway, while the Live Tile lets you start a timer in just one click.

Connectivity Shortcuts (Free) 

Use these Live Tiles to quickly modify your Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and coverage settings, or  simply switch to airplane  mode. Pin them separately to the Start Screen, or why not  make four teeny tiles to sit together in a single Transformer tile of settings adjustment?

PC Remote (Free) 

Control movies and music on your Windows PC from afar with this convenient,  well-built app. It puts touch-controls as well as  media folders into the sleek Windows Phone tile design. You can manage Spotify, iTunes and other media players, or play YouTube content on the  phone app to your PC’s monitor. It requires a companion program on the  PC in question.

AppFlow App Discovery (Free) 

How meta – an app for finding more apps. This app uses statistics and more detailed categorising than the Windows Store to  give you more ways of finding new apps, with lists such as Rising Stars and Forgotten Legends, as well as numbers on the downloads.