Technology
How to update your PIN or password on your Android
The security of our personal devices is more important than ever. Donna, a resident of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, reached out with a distressing situation that many of us might find all too relatable. Her story is a stark reminder of how quickly technology can turn from a tool into a tormentor when in the wrong hands – even if those hands belong to someone we trust.
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A person holding an Android phone (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
The unwanted hacker
Donna watched in disbelief as her son, armed with a computer science degree and a disregard for boundaries, hacked into her Android. A simple, innocuous-looking message popped up, a common enough occurrence in our daily digital lives, which led to a series of unfortunate events. This message asked her to re-sign into some apps, a gateway her son exploited to wreak havoc.
As Donna describes it, her ability to use her Android dwindled rapidly. Text messaging became an ordeal, her phone’s battery life plummeted, and her pleas for him to stop fell on deaf ears. The situation highlights a grim reality: the people with the capacity to harm us the most might not always be strangers from the digital void but those within our own homes. And while the “how” of her son’s actions became painfully clear, the “why” remained a mystery, leaving Donna grappling with questions that had no easy answers.
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Taking back control
Feeling violated and helpless, Donna sought our help, desperate for a solution. Our advice is straightforward yet powerful: change the device’s password. This simple act is often the first defense against unauthorized access, yet many overlook its significance.
For those in Donna’s shoes, particularly Android users, changing your password or screen lock method is a breeze. Here’s how to do it.
Settings may vary depending on your Android phone’s manufacturer.
- Swipe down from the main page of your Android screen and tap the settings icon.
- Scroll down and select Lock screen.
- Then tap Screen lock type.
- To make changes, you’ll have to input your current security measure. Then tap Done.
Steps to change lock screen security measure (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
- Once you input your current security measure, select whatever security measure you want to change.
- You can select a new PIN, Password, Pattern or Swipe method. I don’t recommend Swipe, though. The more elaborate your choice generally means it will make your Android more secure and harder to crack.
- Whatever you choose, follow the onscreen prompts to change it to whatever you want, then select Continue.
- Then, enter it one more time to finalize it. Then tap Next.
Steps to change lock screen security measure (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
As far as password security is concerned, consider using a password manager to store and generate complex passwords securely. It will help you create unique, difficult-to-crack passwords that a hacker could never guess. Second, it also keeps track of all your passwords in one place and fills in passwords for you when you’re logging into an account so that you never have to remember them yourself. The fewer passwords you remember, the less likely you will be to reuse them for your accounts.
MORE: BEST ACCESSORIES FOR YOUR ANDROID
Beyond the password change
What if the breach goes beyond a simple lock screen compromise? Donna’s story sheds light on the potential for deeper issues, such as phishing attempts and malware. Here are additional steps to consider:
Review your apps: Uninstall any apps that don’t look familiar or that you don’t remember installing.
Update your phone: Always keep your software up to date to benefit from the latest security patches.
Run a security scan: Use reputable antivirus software to check for malware. The best way to protect yourself from clicking malicious links that install malware that may get access to your private information is to have antivirus protection installed on all your devices. This can also alert you of any phishing emails or ransomware scams. Get my picks for the best 2024 antivirus protection winners for your Windows, Mac, Android & iOS devices.
Consider a factory reset: If all else fails, backing up your data and restoring your phone to its factory settings can be a clean slate.
If these steps don’t resolve the issue, you may want to contact your Android device manufacturer’s customer support for further assistance.
MORE: 5 TIPS YOU DIDN’T KNOW YOU CAN DO ON AN ANDROID
Kurt’s key takeaways
Securing our devices is as much about protecting ourselves from external threats as it is about drawing boundaries that those close to us should respect. Technology is a powerful tool but can become a weapon in the wrong hands.
Have you ever experienced a breach of trust or privacy involving personal technology within your own home? If so, what happened? Let us know by writing us at Cyberguy.com/Contact.
For more of my tech tips & security alerts, subscribe to my free CyberGuy Report Newsletter by heading to Cyberguy.com/Newsletter.
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When Oregon resident Isabelle Reksopuro heard Google was gobbling up public land to fuel its data centers in her home state, she didn’t initially know what to believe. “There’s a lot of misinformation about data centers,” she said. “Google has denied taking that land.”
Technically, she explains, The Dalles, a city near the Washington state border, sought to reclaim that land, “and Google is just a big, unnamed power user.” The city had in fact asked for ownership of a 150-acre portion of Mount Hood National Forest, claiming it needs access to Mount Hood’s watershed to meet municipal needs as its population — 16,010 as of the 2020 census — grows. But critics, including environmentalists, say the city is trying to secure more water for Google, which has a sprawling data center campus in The Dalles that already consumes about one-third of the city’s water supply.
This controversy made Reksopuro curious about the backlash to data centers being built in other communities. So Reksopuro, a student at the University of Washington who studies the connections between tech and public policy, decided to map it out. Using information collected by Epoch AI and data scraped from legislation on data centers, she built an interactive map tracking AI policy around the world. She designed it to be simple enough for anyone to use. “I wanted it to be something that my younger sisters could play through and explore to understand what are the data centers in the area and what’s actually being done about it,” Reksopuro said. She hoped to shift their opinions that way, “instead of like, through TikTok.”
Four times a day, the map searches for new sources and checks them against the existing database Reksopuro built out. “Once it does that, it will write a new summary, add it to the news feed, and populate it on the sidebar,” she said. “I wanted it to be self-updating, since I’m also a student.”
Reksopuro isn’t against data centers, but she thinks tech giants benefit from a lack of transparency around data center policies. “Right now, it’s this really opaque thing — and all of a sudden, there’s a facility,” she said. “I think that if people knew about data centers beforehand, it would give them leverage. They would be able to negotiate: ask for job training programs, tax revenue, environmental monitoring, things to improve their community.”
UCF commencement speaker Gloria Caulfield (University of Central Florida via Storyful)
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– OPINION: DIRECTOR KASH PATEL: We brought the FBI out of the past and into the AI age
– OpenAI backs creation of global AI governance body led by the U.S. that would include China as a member
TOUGH CROWD: During a recent commencement ceremony at the University of Central Florida, a speaker was met with loud boos from the graduating class after declaring that artificial intelligence represents the next industrial revolution. Fox News Digital reporting captures this tense cultural moment, illustrating the mixed public sentiment and skepticism surrounding AI’s growing footprint in daily life.
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FBI Director Kash Patel listened as Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche spoke during a press conference at the Department of Justice on April 28, 2026, in Washington, D.C. (Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)
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OpenAI CEO Sam Altman speaks during the 2026 Infrastructure Summit in Washington, D.C., on March 11, 2026. (Kylie Cooper/Reuters)
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Microsoft Edge is adding a new feature that will allow its Copilot AI chatbot to gather information from all of your open tabs. When you start a conversation with Copilot, you can ask the chatbot questions about what’s in your tabs, compare the products you’re looking at, summarize your open articles, and more.
In its announcement, Microsoft says you can “select which experiences you want or leave off the ones you don’t.” The company is retiring Copilot Mode as well, which could similarly draw information from your tabs but offered some agentic features, like the ability to book a reservation on your behalf. Microsoft has since folded these agentic capabilities into its “Browse with Copilot” tool.
Several other AI features are coming to Edge, including an AI-powered “Study and Learn” mode that can turn the article you’re looking at into a study session or interactive quiz. There’s a new tool that turns your tabs into AI-powered podcasts as well, similar to what you’d find on NotebookLM, and an AI writing assistant that will pop up when you start entering text on a webpage.
You can also give Copilot permission to access your browsing history to provide more “relevant, high-quality answers,” according to Microsoft. Copilot in Edge on desktop and mobile will come with “long-term memory” as well, which can tailor its responses based on your previous conversations. And, when you open up a new tab, you’ll see a redesigned page that combines chat, search, and web navigation, along with the Journeys feature, which uses AI to organize your browsing history into categories that you can revisit.
Meanwhile, an update to Edge’s mobile app will allow you to share your screen with Copilot and talk through the questions about what you’re seeing. Microsoft says you’ll see “clear visual cues” when Copilot is active, “so you know when it’s taking an action, helping, listening, or viewing.”
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