Cell phones are a major source of Coronavirus infection! Follow these simple phone cleaning tips to stay safe!

The Coronavirus scare is magnifying day-by-day. India reports close to 70 patients infected with Coronavirus. While you are worried about stopping the 30-second Coronavirus caller tune that aims at creating awareness about the infection, there is much more that you need to worry about, while you hold the phone!

Did you know that cell phones appear to be a major source of disease-causing bacteria and viruses? Scientific studies say that our phones have 18 times more bacteria than a toilet handle, and a quick wipe on your shirt sleeve or dress is not going to make it go away! This means that there is a good possibility of contracting Coronavirus from our phones!

The novel coronavirus that causes the respiratory disease known as COVID-19 is capable of surviving on some surfaces for up to nine days. So it is possible that our devices too can harbor the virus for some time. It is also believed that devices owned by doctors and other healthcare practitioners can be a potential substrate for the virus to harbor itself.

One major piece of advice that the World Health Organization has said that, in general, people must follow personal hygiene by washing hands regularly and also avoiding touching the face. But do you realize that our cell phones are touching our cheeks most of the time? So it is appropriate to keep our devices clean, irrespective of the Coronavirus threat.

Let's take a look at a few tips that can help keep our devices sterile:

1. AT&T in a blog post has suggested that one could spray a nonabrasive or alcohol-based (isopropyl) disinfectant directly on a soft lint-free cloth and wipe down the device while it is powered down and unplugged. You can prepare a mix of 60% water and 40% isopropyl rubbing alcohol, which can be found at your local drugstore. Wiping with a soft, lint-free cloth or microfiber cloth is the best. The soft cloth is the same as the one given to keep our spectacle lens free of dust. Dampen the corner of the cloth with a bit of water or isopropyl and gently move the cloth up and down in one direction. It is important to just wet a small portion of the cloth, use that side to wipe and not apply or spray water directly onto your phone. Use the dry corner of the cloth to remove any excess on your phone. Most e-commerce websites like Amazon and Flipkart sell these cleaning products as a kit. You could purchase the one that suits you best.
2. Cotton swabs also do a great job in cleaning devices. They can be used to clean in place of the soft cloth.
3.  Disinfectant wipes also help. A web search points to Lysol and Clorox wipes that Apple recommends.
4. White Vinegar and Water mixture is a common household cleaning hack.  This can be used for cell phone cleaning too instead of alcohol + water mixture.  Prepare a mix of 50% distilled water and 50% white vinegar. Lightly dampen the corner of a soft, lint-free cloth or a microfiber cloth with the distilled water and white vinegar mix. Again, don’t apply or spray the mix directly onto your phone. Gently wipe your phone with the cloth in a single direction. Use the dry corner of the cloth to remove any excess on your phone.