Can You Get a Trojan Virus on an iPhone? Here’s What You Should Know

Ivana Vojinovic

Updated: May 6, 2023

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Despite the rarity of iPhone Trojans, malware infection is possible. Fortunately, removing malware from an iPhone is a simple process.

A significant advantage of owning an iPhone lies in its security features, which provide excellent protection against all sorts of malware. No phone, however, is completely safe from possible threats and malware infections. That’s why one of the most pressing questions among iPhone users is whether or not a Trojan virus on an iPhone is a real risk. 

Understanding what a Trojan is, scanning your system regularly, and removing malware from your iPhone are the steps you need to take to ensure security, so let’s get started!

What Is a Trojan Virus on an iPhone?

People commonly refer to unwelcome software on their smartphone or computer as a virus, but there’s a distinction between a virus and malware. Malware is defined as anything that can damage, corrupt, or steal your personal data and disable your devices. Both viruses and Trojans are considered malware, the difference being that a Trojan doesn’t replicate and execute itself. In contrast, a virus makes copies of itself, modifying your phone’s software once it has infiltrated it.

Malicious software includes Trojan horses, viruses, and spyware programs. Although viruses are uncommon on the iPhone, it’s possible to get infected with an iPhone Trojan or spyware that can expose your phone’s activity to a third party. Keeping your iOS up to date can greatly reduce the chances of this happening.

Does My iPhone Have Malware?

If you’ve noticed unpredictable activity on your iPhone, there’s a chance it’s been infected with some type of malware. It’s best to scan your iPhone for malware if you’ve observed the following signs:

• You’re seeing apps you don’t recognize: If apps that you didn’t install keep appearing on your phone, it might be an indication that your phone has come down with a case of iOS malware. You should uninstall any unfamiliar app from your phone.

• Apps suddenly crashing: If one or more apps keep crashing for no reason, it’s best to delete and reinstall them. If the problem persists, it might be a good time to scan your iPhone for malware. 

• iPhone battery quickly draining: If your battery needs recharging earlier than it should, it could be due to background activity from a recently visited website or new app.

• Your iPhone is overheating: Malware is a frequent cause of phone overheating. If you’ve noticed that your iPhone is heating up, that might indicate malware activity.

• Your iPhone is jailbroken: If you wanted to install untrusted apps that can’t be downloaded from the App Store, you would need to jailbreak your device. This is not recommended because it puts your iPhone at a higher risk of getting infected by malware.

• Increased data usage: If the data use on your iPhone suddenly increases, it could be a sign that malware is consuming data in the background. That’s why it’s always a good idea to keep track of your monthly data usage.

How To Remove Malware From iPhone

If you’ve scanned your iPhone for potential malware and discovered malicious software (or if your scan didn’t show any results, but you still suspect the phone is infected), you should take these simple steps as soon as possible.

• Delete suspicious apps: Delete any unusual apps you didn’t download from the App Store or apps you installed around the time the issue began.

• Restart your phone: In some circumstances, restarting your device may remove malware from an iPhone. If this doesn’t work, you can try to force restart your phone and put it in recovery mode.

• Clear your history and data: Clearing your Safari history may aid in the removal of malware from your iPhone and prevent your personal information and passwords from getting compromised. 

• Back up your iPhone and restore to factory settings: If restoring to an earlier backup version doesn’t resolve the issue of malware on your iPhone, you should try reverting to factory settings. As this step will erase your data, make sure that you don’t lose important information in the process.

The Bottom Line

So, can you get a Trojan virus on your iPhone? 

Although some people still believe that an iPhone getting infected by any type of malware is highly improbable, a Trojan virus on an iPhone is not impossible.

Paying attention to your phone’s performance, updating and scanning it regularly, as well as being cautious about the apps you install are essential for staying protected. With the ever-increasing threats that continue to keep surfacing across the web, downloading a trusted anti-malware or antivirus program from the App Store is definitely a wise idea.