5 Best Free Messaging Apps For Android

It was a strange day when text messages took over phone calls as the primary way to communicate with personal contacts. For those of us without unlimited texting plans, it can be a pain to keep up with friends and family. Need a free way to send messages with your phone? Check out these apps.

Disclaimer: The “free text messages” in these apps is not the same as SMS messages. None of these apps can send SMS or MMS for free. If that’s what you want, you may be more interested in how to send a free SMS online instead. 

Facebook Messenger

Not so long ago, we compared Facebook Messenger with Google Hangouts, looking to determine which of the two reigns supreme. Facebook came out on top (not unlike the actual social networks themselves), beating out Google in every way except in quality of audio/video calls. Today, Facebook Messenger remains a strong contender in the messaging arena.

What’s good?

The best “feature” of Facebook is its massive userbase. Even if the recipient doesn’t use Facebook Messenger itself, you can still send free messages to them. You can also make calls for free to other Messenger users over WiFi and data (though data charges still apply). The Chat Heads feature, which causes messages to pop up even when you’re using another app, allows you to continue conversations no matter what you’re doing.

What’s not?

No capability for video calling, which could be a huge bummer for those of you who want something similar to Apple’s FaceTime. Not being integrated with the official Facebook app is a bit of an annoyance. In fact, the app being associated with Facebook (not the most privacy-sensitive company out there) is probably this app’s greatest drawback. Requires a Facebook account to log in.

Path Talk

Path Talk is one of the newer messengers to hit the scene, but already it’s making a big splash throughout the community. It claims to be good enough to replace the need for SMS and Facebook altogether, but does it have enough features to back up that claim?

What’s good?

Messaging is free. Path Talk can keep your friends updated on your status, such as whether you’re in transit or low on battery. The interface is familiar and sleek, which is important for day-to-day comfort and ease of use. In addition to text messages, you can send simple voice messages.
But most importantly, Path Talk cares about your privacy. Every message sent with Path Talk is stored on their servers for a maximum of 24 hours before they’re automatically deleted. Worried about text messages being logged? Here’s one answer to that.

What’s not?

Path actually started out as a social network and Talk was its communication feature. Path Talk is the result of Path splitting their Talk functionality away from the social network and putting it out there on its own. For Path users, this is an unnecessary redundancy. Requires a Path account to log in.

LINE Messenger

LINE is a very well-known messaging app that deserves its reputation. With over 480 million users spanning over 230 countries, it really is international, worldwide, and global in every sense of those words. It’s so good that it’s been labeled “the most downloaded app” in over 50 of those countries.

What’s good?

LINE’s killer feature is the ability to make free calls and send free messages at any time in any place. Calls include voice and video and they’re free both domestically and internationally. There are a few other features of lesser importance, such as the “Timeline” that tracks what you and your contacts have been doing lately as well as the ability to use Emoji. There’s also a LINE Call feature for reaching non-LINE users at a low rate.

What’s not?

LINE messages can only be sent between LINE users, which means you’re out of luck if your social group doesn’t use it. Despite being used all over the world, LINE’s popularity is mostly concentrated in Asian countries. Requires a LINE account to log in.

WeChat

WeChat is an all-in-one communication app that doesn’t have many distinguishing features to set it apart from its competition, yet has built up a massive community of users regardless. It’s not as popular as LINE, but it still blows many other messengers out of the water.

What’s good?

Completely free for sending text messages, multimedia messages, voice calls, and video calls. Group chats can fit up to 100 participants. There’s also the ability to share “moments” with your friends, which is essentially a stream of your photos. Localized to support over 20 languages and certified by TRUSTe to ensure user privacy.

What’s not?

The interface feels a little crowded at times. Requires a WeChat account to log in.

Viber

Last year, we noted that Viber on iOS is pretty good. As it turns out, Viber on Android is pretty darn good too. Not too long ago, they released the “Viber Out” feature that lets you make low-cost calls around the world, making it a fantastic option for VOIP. But how does it fare for text messaging?

What’s good?

Not only can you make calls, but Viber is great for sending text, photo, and video messages for free over WiFi and data. Group chats are available for up to 100 participants. Quality is great, there are over 200 million Viber users, and the app has support for over 30 localized languages. Free without ads.

What’s not?

Viber collects names and phone numbers for functional reasons, which is understandable given the nature of the app, but it does raise some concerns regarding privacy and security. Messages can only be sent between Viber users. Requires a Viber account to log in.

Final Thoughts

So which is the best? In terms of raw features and performance, I think it’s a toss-up between Viber and LINE. Both are simple and clean with feature-complete messaging and cheap calling. However, if you care much about privacy, Path Talk‘s commitment to deleting messages from server after 24 hours is enticing.
However, which one is best for you? It really depends on your social circle. None of these can send SMS messages, so if you want to take advantage of free messaging, you should use the one that most of your friends and family use.
Do you use a messaging app rather than SMS text messages? Which one? Are they worth the hassle or have you reverted back to basics? Share your experience with us in the comments below!

Source: http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/5-best-free-messaging-apps-android/

Samsung Galaxy S6 release date, news, specs and all the rumors

We know the Galaxy S6 is a long, long way off, but that hasn't stopped the rumor mongers from starting up all kinds of Galaxy S6 business. Some of it has credibility and some of it is pure speculation, so let's try to cut through the crap and stick with what actually seems likely.

The Galaxy F/Alpha may be next on the starting block, but the Galaxy S6 will be very important for Samung. / © @evleaks

Samsung Galaxy S6 release date

This is the easiest one, with the last two Samsung Galaxy flagships being announced in either late February or March and being released to the market in April. The Galaxy S3 popped out a little later in May, but we tend to think that Samsung will try to dominate Mobile World Congress again next year just as they did this year with the S5, giving their 2015 flagship a likely April market start with a public unveiling in the first few days of March.
Considering the Galaxy S5 wasn't as well received as Samsung had hoped though, we might even see a super early appearance at CES in Las Vegas in January if the management floors at Samsung are freaking out at having to give back some of their bonuses due to lackluster S5 sales. As you may recall, the S5 launch was initially supposed to be accelerated to make up for less than spectacular Galaxy S4 sales.

The Galaxy S5 LTE-A has previewed some of what we might see pushed in the Galaxy S6. / © Takor/Samsung

Samsung Galaxy S6 news

Perhaps the biggest news in terms of what to expect from the Galaxy S6 is that Samsung is definitely feeling the pinch, not just financially but also in the popularity stakes. The S4 failed to impress the masses and the S5 performed much the same, even if we still think it's a solid offering, as you can read in our Galaxy S5 review. The problem is that the general consensus is that Samsung is getting lazy, not innovating and pumping out the same micro-variations one after the other. Considering Samsung are set to post their biggest quarterly loss in two years, it seems very likely that Samsung are going to go all out in the Galaxy Note 4 and Galaxy S6 to regain that market share, profit margin and reputation as a serious market leader.

• Check out everything we know about the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 right now.

Whichever way you cut it, Samsung has to step up quickly to fix this slide. / © Korea JoongAng Daily

Samsung Galaxy S6 specs

Without giving credibility to unfounded rumors we can do a bit of logical extrapolation on this front. A 64-bit processor is guaranteed and we will surely get two versions again, one Snapdragon powered and another with an octa-core Exynos chip to power what we hope with be Android 5.0 with a refined version of TouchWiz. The Qualcomm processor will likely be the Snapdragon 808, depending on when it will be commercially available, as the Snapdragon 805 has already started to appear in devices restricted to South Korean markets and the Snapdragon 810 may still be a bit too far away for mass production volumes. 3 GB of RAM seems certain but you won't be able to keep the rumor hounds away from higher numbers, especially considering the next Android version will support up to 4 GB of RAM. Let's wait and see on that one.
The camera will likely get a bump in megapixels, perhaps to 20 MP, from the 16 MP camera we've seen in the Galaxy S5. The Galaxy S6 will definitely get Optical Image Stabilization as we were expecting that to debut in the S5 but are now holding out for the Note 4. Battery performance will be outstanding if the Galaxy S5 is anything to go by. Even if Samsung bumped the capacity up to 3,000 mAh and stuck with their existing battery management tech we'd be very happy, so any additional improvements between now and then will be very eagerly awaited. We're interested to see just how committed Samsung are to the dedicated home button and finger scanner combo, but I'd say we'll see a repeat of both with the heart-rate monitor tacked on the back as well for even more wearable integration.

• Take a look at how the Galaxy S5 finger scanner works (and doesn't).

The camera has always been one of Samsung's strong points. / © Samsung

The screen can't get much larger than it currently is in the Galaxy S5 at 5.1-inches, and it seems unlikely that Samsung would want to start encroaching on their phablet territory by pushing it to 5.5 inches. A QHD display seems a certainty though, considering the Galaxy S5 LTE-A has already appeared with a 2K display and the battery performance is reportedly even better than the Galaxy S5 with Full HD display. Samsung has beaten their chest publicly already about UHD displays (3840 x 2160 pixels) in 2015 but this seems more likely to be reserved for the Galaxy Note 5. There's no reason to believe that Samsung would abandon its successful Super AMOLED display tech in the S6. One thing we are looking forward to is smaller bezels, which we've already caught a glimpse of on the Galaxy S5 LTE-A.

Samsung Galaxy S6 rumors

This section could get very, very long so I'll keep it brief and migrate rumors that firm up as time goes by to the sections above. We already know that the Galaxy Note 4 is more than likely going to be Samsung's debut device with a curved OLED display. We've covered more Note 4 news and expectations in our Galaxy Note 4 release date, news, specs and rumors article. The interesting comes down to whether Samsung will bring that same tech to their flagship smartphone? I really can't say at this stage, but I expect Samsung will have two versions being prototyped until there's some kind of public response to the Note 4. That may seal the deal for whether or not we see curved in the Galaxy S6's display.

We already know that Samsung is invested in iris scanning tech, but will it appear in the Galaxy S6? / © PatentBolt

The iris scanner rumors just won't die, and there's every possibility that the Note 4, the Galaxy S6 or even both will sport an iris scanner. Samsung has confirmed they were working on the tech, but costing, manufacturing and precision need to be just right to implement it. I suspect Samsung are still stinging from the public perception of the finger scanner in the S5. Nevertheless, it seems unlikely that Samsung would abandon that tech after only one go around the market place. Other rumors about the Tizen platform, graphene and a metal body are nothing more than that right now. Keep in mind too, though, that the Galaxy Alpha/Galaxy F is nearing its time in the spotlight and Samsung are now obviously committed to releasing multiple versions of their flagship at every possible opportunity.

• Want to know all the specs, news and rumors about the Galaxy F/Alpha?

What are your expectations for the Galaxy S6? What do you think Samsung needs to do to get back on top?

Source: http://www.androidpit.com/samsung-galaxy-s6-release-date-news-specs-features

The Pirate Bay Goes Mobile With New Site

By NICK BILTON

July 24, 2014 10:30 pmJuly 25, 2014 8:25 am

Photo

The Pirate Bay’s new mobile website offers the same features as the desktop site.Credit Screenshot via The Pirate Bay

People can complete all sorts of tasks with a smartphone now — order tickets, check the weather or call a taxi. Starting Thursday, people will also be able to easily steal copyrighted content on their mobile phones.

The Pirate Bay, one of the most popular sites on the web for illegally downloading copyrighted material, announced that it is releasing a mobile-centric version of its website, called The Mobile Bay.

The new site offers the The Pirate Bay’s practically limitless list of links to material, and the site’s full search capabilities, on a clean and concise layout for mobile phones. People can reach all the same content available on the desktop website, including movies, e-books, music and television shows.

While the mobile site is easy to navigate, it comes with the same sort of advertising that litters the desktop site. There are a few 1990s-style pop-ups, too.

The mobile site was first reported by TorrentFreak, a blog covering piracy and file-sharing, which noted that this was one of the biggest changes to The Pirate Bay since it opened for business over a decade ago.

The Pirate Bay team told TorrentFreak in an interview that the update on Thursday was the first in a series of new features that would make it easier for people to discover content. “The TV, movie and music sections on The Pirate Bay will each get their own dedicated sites,” TorrentFreak reported.

The Pirate Bay is also working on a new feature called “RSSbay,” its organizers said, which will let people create personalized RSS feeds to automatically download torrents from remote locations.

The Pirate Bay has been in a constant legal battle with authorities around the world since the site began, but the people behind the service almost always manage to stay one step ahead of government agencies.

Some media companies have acknowledged using pirating sites, including The Pirate Bay, to their benefit. Last year, a senior Netflix executive said the company used such sites to determine the genre of new shows that viewers might be interested in, and the type of shows Netflix should produce or license. Time Warner’s chief executive, Jeffrey L. Bewkes, also said that pirated content could be “a tremendous word-of-mouth thing.”

While authorities and some entertainment companies have tried to stop The Pirate Bay from growing, the site has doubled its traffic since 2011, according to internal numbers about site use that Pirate Bay organizers released this month.

Source: http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/07/24/the-pirate-bay-goes-mobile-with-new-site/?_php=true&_type=blogs&partner=rss&emc=rss&_r=0

Mobile security: Apps to protect Android devices

By Fred Langa on July 9, 2014. 

There are hundreds of free and paid security apps for Android phones and tablets. But many of those offerings are of uncertain quality.

Here’s a sampling of some of the best software for keeping Android devices free of malware, managing passwords, locking up your data, and more.

Android needs third-party security apps

If you have an Android phone or tablet, there’s good news and bad news.
The good news: You’ve picked the world’s best-selling mobile operating system. Something like 70 percent of all new phones and tablets run Google’s OS. That’s a strong incentive for software developers to build cool applications for the platform.
The bad news: Android’s open architecture and popularity have made it a favorite target for malicious hackers, thieves, and other criminals.
Android’s built-in security features have never been strong, and even the latest version (4.4.4, as I write this) offers only modest safeguards for your personal data and communications. For that reason, all Android devices need third-party security apps in order to be safe. (Virtually no operating system, by itself, is safe from malicious hacking.)
Fortunately, there are plenty of Android security tools to choose from. The Google Play Store has all manner of free and commercial apps. Note, however, that some are junk — amateurish software that could cause crashes, hangs, slowdowns, or other problems.
Other tools seem to work fine — until you look at them more closely. Take, for example, some “free” virtual private networking (VPN) apps, which provide some Web-browsing anonymity (especially on public Wi-Fi) by routing your data through the VPN provider’s servers. If the service is free, how does the provider pay the bills for running the servers and buying Internet bandwidth? How does the provider keep the lights lit? A cautious person might suspect that the company is mining user data.
That said, there are many reputable companies with excellent Android security products. Some are familiar and well-respected names you might recognize from the Windows world, while others are relative newcomers who develop products exclusively for mobile operating systems.
Below, I’ll provide summaries of well-regarded security apps — some paid, others free — in five essential categories:

• Antivirus/anti-malware suites
• Password management and encryption
• Lost or stolen device recovery
• VPNs
• Secure file-wiping (to delete personal data when you’re selling or trading in your device)

(Note: The following information applies equally to all portable Android-based devices, including tablets. But for brevity, I’ll use “phone” throughout the rest of the article.)

Security suites: The absolutely must-have apps

The cornerstone of Android safety is a good security suite from a reputable vendor. Even a single, well-designed security app can provide coverage against a wide range of attacks and dangers.
Lookout Security & Antivirus (Google Play page; publisher’s website) is a typical example of a reputable suite in the security category. It offers a comprehensive selection of tools (see Figure 1) — some free and others paid. (I’ll list other brands in a moment.)

Figure 1. Lookout Security & Antivirus offers basic security features for free; additional features are in its paid version.

Lookout’s free version provides:

• Anti-malware: It gives automatic, always-on protection from viruses, adware, spyware, and other types of malware.
• Lost/stolen phone recovery tools: A map shows you the phone’s location (see Figure 2), viewable via a free, private account on the Lookout website.
  The Scream option sounds a loud alarm, even if the sound was turned off. The alarm might scare a thief into abandoning the phone, but it can also help in more mundane situations such as when you simply misplace the phone at home or the office. The sound will lead you to the phone’s location.
  
  
  
  

  
  

  Figure 2. Lookout can help you locate and recover a phone, whether it's been stolen or just lost in the sofa cushions.
• Signal flare: This option saves your phone’s location when the battery is about to run out. It might help you find the phone once it’s gone dead.
• Automatic backups: Your contacts are saved to your private account on the Lookout website. You can download the contacts to your PC or to a new or secondary device.
• Multiple device support: The free account is limited to two devices.

Lookout’s paid version adds:

• Expanded Theft Alert features: You can have the phone send an email to your PC in the following circumstances:
  
  1. The phone’s unlock passcode is incorrectly entered more than three times in a row.
  2. The SIM card is removed.
  3. Airplane mode is enabled or the device is turned off (two tricks thieves might try to avoid detection), or a thief tinkers with the phone’s Device Administrator mode.
  Lookout’s notification email includes a map of the phone’s location when the Theft Alert was generated plus a theftie — a photo of the person holding the phone at the time the alert was triggered, taken automatically with the phone’s built-in camera. The same Theft Alert information is posted on your private account on the Lookout website.
• Privacy Advisor: This lets you manage the permissions and personal data that each app on the phone can access.
• Remote lock and wipe: In the event the phone is stolen and not recoverable, you can remotely lock it and erase your personal data.
• Safe Browsing: This option alerts you when you visit websites known to harbor malware or other security threats.
• Photo and call-history backups: Use this tool to automatically clone photos and call data to your private Lookout account.
• Multiple device support: This lets you manage up to three devices from a single Lookout account.

You can test-drive Lookout’s paid version for up to two weeks at no cost; after that, it’s a modest U.S. $3 per month or $30 per year.
Again, Lookout Security & Antivirus is just one example of a typical, comprehensive, Android security suite. There are other suites with similar features.
For example, Avast Mobile Security & Antivirus (Google Play page; publisher’s site) doesn’t take “thefties” of would-be phone thieves, but its paid version does offer Geo-Fencing — the phone performs a specified action (lock, siren, send location, and so forth) if it passes outside a perimeter you’ve established, such as a set distance from your table in a café. It also offers App Lock, which lets you passcode- or gesture-protect access to specified apps.
Avast Mobile Security & Antivirus is available in both free and paid versions; after a 30-day free trial, the premium edition costs $2 per month or $15 per year.
Bitdefender is another name that might be familiar to Windows users. Its Mobile Security & Antivirus (Google Play page; publisher’s site) is also available in free and paid versions. Its features are similar to Avast’s, but it tries to differentiate itself with aggressive pricing. After a two-week free trial, the paid version costs only $1 per month or $10 per year.
You can download Kaspersky Internet Security (Google Play page; publisher’s site) for free. You must register with Kaspersky for the paid edition’s 30-day free trial; it’s $15 per year to keep. Two advanced features are Call & Text Filter, which helps block unwanted calls and texts, and a theftie option similar to Lookout’s; it can automatically take a photo of a would-be thief.
Again, you can find many more security suites, apps, and options by visiting the Google Play Store and using the search string “security” or “security suite.”

Password management and data encryption

It’s likely you’ve already been affected by one or more of the recent and massive corporate hacking incidents such as the data thefts at Adobe, Target, eBay, and others.
One of the best ways to protect yourself against these increasingly common hacks is to use a unique password for every site. (See the Oct. 17, 2013, Top Story, “Protect yourself from the next big data breach.”)
Remembering potentially dozens of passwords sounds burdensome, especially on a phone or tablet where typing can be difficult. But password-management software makes it vastly easier. The software does the hard lifting for you, remembering all passwords and storing them in a securely encrypted database.
If you’re using password-management software on your PC, there’s a good chance you can find an Android equivalent. That can greatly simplify setup and use because the software will already be familiar. It might even be able to access and use the database of passwords on your PC, saving you from the chore of re-entering everything again.
For example, RoboForm (possibly the world’s most popular password manager) has a free Android version (Google Play page; publisher’s site) that connects with an existing desktop RoboForm Everywhere account ($10 per year). Android’s built-in browser (a version of Chrome) doesn’t work with third-party password apps, so RoboForm comes with its own mini-browser that you can use to sign in to password-protected sites. You can also use the RoboForm app with Android editions for Dolphin or Firefox.
Similarly, there are two free Android versions of the popular, open-source, desktop Keepass Password Safe. One is called Keepass2Android Password Safe (Google Play page; publisher’s site) and is shown in Figure 3.

Figure 3. As with other password managers, enter a site's password once and Keepass2Android will then remember it for you.

The other Android version of Keepass is called KeepassDroid (Google Play page; publisher’s site). Both versions operate much like the desktop version of KeePass, and they share the same database format.
If desktop commonality isn’t an issue for you, the free/donationware, open-source Universal Password Manager (Google Play page; publisher’s site) might be of interest.
You can find many similar apps by using the search terms “password manage” and “manage password” (though seemingly similar, the two searches yield slightly different results).

Apps for recovering lost or stolen phones

As already mentioned, many of the best Android security suites (Lookout, Avast, Bitdefender, Kaspersky, and so forth) come with robust tools that can help you find and recover a lost or stolen phone — typically by sending you a map of the phone’s location, letting you wipe or lock the phone, and even snapping a photo of the thief.
But most versions of Android also include basic, built-in features that can reconnect you with your phone — or wipe it clean. For example, Android 4.1 and higher includes the Device Manager app (see Figure 4) that can, when linked to your Google account, locate your phone on a map and let you remotely ring, lock, or erase it. The specific details are explained in the Android Device Manager support page. 

Figure 4. Android's built-in Device Manager lets you locate, ring, lock, or erase a lost phone remotely from your Google account running on another device (shown above).

Older versions of Android — 2.2 and higher — allow for basic remote wiping, as explained on the Remote Wipe a Mobile Device support page.
Those tools are better than nothing, but third-party apps such as the following can do more — for example, take photos of a would-be thief. Visit the associated websites for full details.

• Where’s My Droid (Google Play page; publisher’s site) offers basic capabilities for free (see Figure 5) plus extended features — such as remote lock — for $4. 
•  
  
  

  
  

  Figure 5. Where's My Droid offers good lost device–recovery features, including a GPS-based locator.
• AndroidLost (Google Play page; publisher’s site) is completely free, though the program’s author accepts voluntary donations.
• Locate My Droid (Google Play page; publisher’s site) also is free, with voluntary donations accepted.

Virtual private network apps for Android

A virtual private network (VPN) connection can let your phone operate securely, privately, and anonymously from any site — even from public hotspots in coffee shops, airports, restaurants, hotels, and so on.
A VPN uses encryption to establish a secure, private channel between your PC and the VPN provider’s server. That server, in turn, then connects to whatever website or other server you want to reach (see Wikipedia’s VPN article).
But you really want to trust the VPN provider, because it’ll potentially have access to your unencrypted data. Most legitimate VPN services recover their costs by charging a modest fee based on your data usage — or by displaying ads as you use their service. I think this is an important consideration, because a provider with a viable revenue stream should never feel tempted to mine your data stream for usernames, passwords, credit-card numbers, and so on.
Here are some of the better regarded Android VPN services and their associated client software:

• VyprVPN for Android (Google Play page; publisher’s site) — three-day free trial; $7–$20 per month thereafter, depending on plan details
• ExpressVPN (Google Play page; publisher’s site) — one-day free trial; $8–$13 per month thereafter
• IPVanish (Google Play page; publisher’s site) — one-week, money-back guarantee; $5–$8 per month thereafter
• Hotspot Shield: VPN Proxy WiFi (Google Play page; publisher’s site) — free, ad-supported version; ad-free Elite version, $30 per year.

Apps for thoroughly sanitizing Android devices

No, this is not dipping your phone into a glass of Lysol. When it’s time to sell or trade in your phone, all recent-vintage Android-based models let you easily restore the original factory configuration. That makes it harder — but not impossible — for the next user to recover traces of your data left behind in the phone’s flash memory.
In fact, completely erasing flash memory is technically difficult and could require special tools and extra steps. (For more info, see the Sept. 13, 2012, Top Story, “Rethinking the process of hard-drive sanitizing.”)
If your phone uses a removable SD memory card, scrubbing it is relatively easy. The best bet is to remove the card, connect it to your PC, and use the tools described in the aforementioned Top Story. (Or, if you can, simply keep the SD card, possibly reusing it in some other device you own.)
But when the flash memory is built into the phone, it’s harder to get at — and harder to erase. These apps can help:

• SaniDroid (Google Play page; publisher’s site) — $1 
•  
  
  

  
  Figure 6. Special-purpose apps such as Sanidroid can help remove lingering traces of personal data from a phone you're selling or trading in.
• iShredder 3 (Google Play page; publisher’s site) — free and Pro versions ($3.50); see site for details
• Secure Wipe (Google Play page; publisher’s site) — free
• SHREDroid (Google Play page; publisher’s site) — free (doesn’t work on Motorola devices)
• File Shredder (Google Play page; publisher’s site) — free (works only on a file-and-folder basis; reportedly, whole-phone erasure in a future paid-for version)

Security tools can help keep you safe

Mobile devices such as phones and tablets are wonderfully convenient, but they also pose huge security risks. Not only are these devices subject to the same kind of malware and hacking that your Windows PC must cope with, they’re also far more likely to be lost or stolen than your desktop or laptop system.
But with one good tool from each of the categories above, your portable Android device can be as safe and secure as current technology allows. None of these products will dent your pocketbook, so protect yourself!

Source: http://windowssecrets.com/top-story/mobile-security-apps-to-protect-android-devices/

What is the Dark Web?

First, what is the Deep Web?
By Wendy Boswell

The Deep Web - also known as the Invisible Web - is a little bit different than the Web we can access (also known as the "surface Web") via a search engine or direct URL. This unseen Web is so much larger than the Web we know - most experts estimate that it's at least 500 times larger than the measurable Web, and growing exponentially.
There are parts of the Deep Web that we can get to via inventive Web searches (see What is the Invisible Web? and The Ultimate Guide to the Invisible Web for more information on this).These sites are all publicly accessible, and search engines add these links to their indexes constantly. Some sites choose not to be included in a search engine's listing, but if you know their direct URL or IP address, you can visit them anyway. 


What is the Dark Web?
There are also parts of the Deep/Invisible Web that are only accessible via specialized software, and this is most commonly known as the Dark Web or "DarkNet". The Dark Web can best be described as the "seedy underbelly" of the Web; shady dealings and illegalities can be found here, but it's also becoming a haven for journalists and whistle blowers, such as Edward Snowden:
"According to security experts, Edward Snowden used the Tor network to send information about the surveillance program PRISM to both the Washington Post and The Guardian in June 2013.....
Without complicating our lives, it is possible to create a server on which files can be stored in encrypted format. The authentication could be implemented in various ways, depending on the level of security desired; for example, it is possible to allow access to the user only if he is in possession of a digital certificate on his machine. The files could all be encrypted and the certificate could be also used as a container to hold the keys to decrypt the information.
If the clear web seems to have no more secret for intelligence agencies, the Deep Web is totally different from this." - "How Edward Snowden Protected His Information and His Life"


How do I get to the Dark Web?
In order to visit the Dark Web, users must install special software that anonymizes their network connections. The most popular is a dedicated browser called Tor:

"Tor is free software and an open network that helps you defend against traffic analysis, a form of network surveillance that threatens personal freedom and privacy, confidential business activities and relationships, and state security."

Once you've downloaded and installed Tor, your browsing anonymity is secure, which is crucial for visiting any part of the Dark Web. Because of the anonymity of the browsing experience on the Dark Web - your tracks are completely covered - many people use it to engage in activities that are semi-legal or illegal; drugs, weapons, and pornography are common here. 
I've heard about something called the "Silk Road". What is that?
The Silk Road was a large marketplace within the Dark Web, mostly infamous for the buying and selling of illegal narcotics, but also offering a wide variety of other goods for sale. Users could only purchase goods here using bitcoins; virtual currency that is hidden inside the anonymous networks that make up the Dark Web. This marketplace was shut down in 2013 and is currently under investigation; according to several sources, there were over one billion worth of goods sold here before it was taken offline.


Is it safe to visit the Dark Web? 
That decision is left completely up to the reader. Using Tor (or other similar anonymizing services) certainly will hide your tracks and help you gain more privacy in your Web searches, which is something that is very important to many people. Your activity online can still be followed, but not as much detail can be ascertained. If you intend to visit the Dark Web purely for curiosity's sake, you most likely don't have anything to worry about; however, if more nefarious undertakings are your goal, be advised that this activity will most likely be tracked and watched by someone. More on this from Fast Company:

"While the Deep Web houses the retail of weapons, drugs, and illicit erotica, there are also useful tools for journalists, researchers, or thrill seekers. It's also worth noting that mere access through Tor is not illegal but can arouse suspicion with the law. Illegal transactions usually begin on the Deep Web but those transactions quite often head elsewhere for retail, private dialoguing, or in-person meetups; that's how most people get caught by law enforcement officials."

Basically, it's up to you whether you'd like to take this journey - and reader discretion is certainly advised. The Dark Web has become a haven for all sorts of different activities; not all of them strictly aboveboard. It's an important part of the Web that bears careful monitoring as privacy concerns grow in importance to society at large. 

The Invisible Web

• What is the Invisible Web?
• The Ultimate Guide to the Invisible Web
• Invisible Web Directories
  
  Source: http://websearch.about.com/od/The-Dark-Web/fl/What-is-the-Dark-Web.htm?nl=1

How to become anonymous online (VPN, TOR & Proxy)