“There’s an app for that” was a phrase plastered onto advertisements for the Apple iPhone starting in 2009. Only about a year old at that point, the App Store was changing people’s relationship with software. Users were growing accustomed to the idea that the smartphone was a digital Swiss Army Knife, its glossy touchscreen waiting to be fitted with the right tool for any job. But what the public had not anticipated as we swiped and scrolled was that our phones might begin to watch us back. 

As we poured our lives into them, managing finances, messaging friends and partners, or simply reading the news, all our interactions became data points that could be used to infer the most private details about us. In a digital ecosystem funded largely by advertising, that data was extraordinarily valuable to the right person, and so developers worked tirelessly to extract it from us. The more apps we loaded onto our pocket computers, the more data they soaked up.

These days, the public generally understands that data collection is commonplace. Without knowing how to protect their digital privacy, though, many users simply accept its erosion as a fact of life. But some of the most effective steps you can take to stop your data from being extracted are as simple as quickly adjusting a few settings, and you don’t need any technical knowledge to do so. From restricting apps’ permissions to opting out of tracking, here are five phone settings that can limit how much data apps collect about you.

Modern versions of iOS and Android are built to constrain the worst data-gorging excesses of app developers. Much of that constraint is built around controlling which parts of your phone an app is allowed to access. When an app requests permission to use your camera or access your location, for example, modern smartphones will let users choose whether to allow it. In general, you should never allow any permission unless you understand why the app needs it.

On an iPhone or Android phone, you can see which apps are using which permissions by going into the settings. On iOS, tap Privacy & Security, and you will see a list of permissions (location, camera, and so on) and which apps have been using them. On Android, head to Settings, tap Security and Privacy, then tap Permissions Used In Last 24 Hours. You will see a list of permissions and the apps that have accessed them.

Alternatively, iPhone users can go into Settings, then Apps. Tapping on an app will show you the permissions it has access to. Android users can do the same from the Apps menu as well. Selecting an app takes you to its App info page, where you can go into the Permissions section to adjust an app’s access.

On Android, there’s one extra bit of legwork. Go back to the main Settings page and tap Apps, then tap the three dots in the top right and select Special Access. Tap Usage Data Access (which allows apps to track how you use them) and toggle it off for all apps. If any apps need that permission to function or use certain features, you can always turn it on later.

One of the primary reasons apps are hungry for your data is that the developers can sell it to advertisers or use it to advertise to you themselves. The way they do this on modern versions of iOS and Android is to create an anonymized advertising identifier. Google, which owns Android, is predictably more aggressive here, since advertising makes up the largest share of its revenue. Apple, being a hardware-forward company, has a larger incentive to protect user privacy. For that reason, Android apps often track by default, whereas iOS shows users a pop-up that lets them opt out of ad tracking when they first open an app.

To opt out of ad tracking on Android, open the Settings app and tap on Google. Tap All Services, then select Ads. Tap Delete Advertising ID, then confirm your choice. While you’re here, you should return to the Google Services page, tap on Usage & Diagnostics, and toggle that setting off to prevent Google from tracking when and how you use your apps. On iOS, you can prevent app tracking requests entirely by opening Settings, tapping on Privacy & Security, then selecting Tracking. Turn off the toggle next to Allow Apps to Request to Track.

However, the best way to avoid tracking from an app is not to have it installed in the first place. You can check what kind of tracking an app does on both Android and iOS before downloading it. In the App Store, tap the App Privacy section of the listing. On the Play Store, tap on Data Safety to see a detailed breakdown. If an app looks intrusive, it’s best not to install it.

There is only so much you can do to restrict the flow of your data by changing security settings on your iPhone or Android. However, many data collection policies can be disabled from in-app settings. While we can’t cover every app, we can highlight a few popular apps to give you an idea of what to look for.

On Instagram, tapping your profile picture then tapping the three-bar icon in the top-right corner of the screen will bring you to the app’s settings. Tap on Accounts Center, then tap ad preferences. Tap Manage Info. Here you will find a long list of settings for different types of data, each with submenus with more settings. There are far too many to cover here, but you must go into each submenu and choose the most data-restrictive options to limit what the app can access.

For TikTok, tap your profile photo on the bottom right, then tap the three-bar icon in the top right, then tap Settings. Scroll down and tap Ads, then turn off the toggles next to Targeted Ads Outside of TikTok and Targeted Ads. If available, also tap Clear Off-TikTok Data and confirm your choice. In DoorDash, tap the account icon near the top-right of the screen, then tap Settings. Tap on Privacy, then tap Learn More underneath the Marketing Choices section. Turn off the toggle next to Ad Personalization.

As you can see from those examples, many apps bury their data collection toggles deep in their settings menus. They also use vague language about ads and marketing in an apparent effort to ensure that most users will never stumble across these important privacy controls.

Samsung Galaxy users have to do a bit more compared to other Android users, since Samsung is yet another party interested in siphoning your data. Although these settings don’t apply to iPhones or non-Samsung Android devices, the fact that Samsung is the second-largest smartphone manufacturer globally means they’re worth going over in addition to the other settings you need to change to stop your Android from tracking you.

To stop Samsung from treating itself to your data, open the Settings app on your Galaxy device, then head to the Security and Privacy section. Scroll down and tap More Privacy Settings. If your device has the option, turn off Personal Data Intelligence and confirm your decision. Aside from the Now Bar, you won’t lose any features by doing this. Toggle off Send Diagnostic Data, as well.

Next, go back to the Security and Privacy page, tap on Account Security, then tap Samsung Account Security. Scroll down and turn off the two toggles next to Get News and Special Offers and Improve Personalized Ads With Samsung Account Data. Next, tap on Customization Service, then turn it off. You will see a pop-up warning you that this will remove features, but the only things you’ll lose are the ability to set location-based reminders in Samsung Reminders and personalized app suggestions in the app switcher.

But we’re still not done. Remember that Customization Service you turned off? Samsung includes separate toggles for it in the Samsung Calendar, Clock, Gallery, and My Files apps, as well as the Galaxy Store. Make sure it’s disabled everywhere, and turn off any other advertising or data collection settings across all your installed Samsung apps.

By far the most effective way to prevent an app from accessing your data is not to have it installed in the first place. While uninstalling apps isn’t a setting in the sense of toggling a switch in a menu, it is a change that alters your device’s configuration, so it fits the technical definition. Of course, if you truly wanted none of your data to be collected, you’d uninstall every app from your phone, including much of the operating system itself. That is, of course, impractical and would defeat the purpose of having a smartphone, so the next best thing is to delete apps you rarely or never use. Remember, you can always reinstall them later!

One way to declutter your app library is to go through all of your apps one by one. If you cannot recall the last time you used an app or no longer have a purpose for it, you can safely delete it. That dating app you don’t use anymore? Uninstall it. The fad selfie editor you used once? Get rid of it post-haste.

On iOS, apps can be deleted from the home screen by holding down on an app icon until the icons begin to jiggle. Tap Remove App, then tap Delete App. On Android, it will depend on your phone’s UI. However, one method that works on any version is to find the app in the Google Play Store and tap the Uninstall button displayed prominently at the top of its listing. Alternatively, you can open Settings and tap on Apps, find the app you want to uninstall, and then tap Uninstall. You will need to confirm your choice in either instance.