In the era of smartphones and technology, where phones have become an integral part of our lives, having a bit of knowledge about the technology we use is never bad.
Knowing a bit about it is always helpful. So, when it comes to privacy phones provide little of it, with so many location-based applications and services, privacy is something that is continuously being compromised whether you like it or not.
Can my phone be tracked if location services is off? How can I be tracked? How to make sure that my privacy will remain intact? Let's find the answers in this article.
Can My Phone Be Tracked If Location Service is Off?
If you question yourself about tracking like:
- If your location is turned off, can you still be tracked?
- Can you track a Samsung phone if it is turned off?
- Will Find my iPhone work if location services are off?
The answer to the simple question is YES. A study in Princeton in 2018 proved this theory to be true. The researchers stated that a mix of non-phone and phone sources are being exploited and used. This will surely help in tracking the location of the device.
What the researchers found was that you could locate the location of a device through a technique called PinMe. In this technique, your GPS and WiFI can be turned off, and you can still find the location of your device.
The PinMe technique uses:
- The time zone of the phone
- Information from the sensors, like air pressure
When this technique is put together with services like maps, the location of a device can be estimated. As only small data is required, thus it is virtually undetectable.
Including this other application also help track our movement a few of them are:
- Fitness apps
- Movement tracking apps
- Whether apps
- Time apps
- Accelerometer
- Barometer
- Magnetometer
All the Android and iPhone users running Google maps on their devices suffer the problems that affect anyone with these devices. According to research, even when you turn off location settings, it doesn't stop sharing your location history. As a researcher was able to navigate and find a fellow's home address through Google maps.
Now this attack on the privacy of technology users can be bad and useful too, like tracking someone who is into illegal activities or those who are missing or when you lose your phone.
It can all be counted as good, but this is bad as well for those who want some privacy and don't want others to know their location like actors or political people.
How to Track Someone When Their Location is Off
Looking at the positive aspect first, being able to find a person or lost phone's location even when their GPS is off can be a blessing in disguise.
With the excess crime rates throughout the world, this might be just the little edge we want to diminish the crime rate. This might not only help you in tracking your loved ones but can help in more.
If questions like how to track a cell phone with GPS turned off? Or can you track a Samsung phone if its turned off? daunt you. Worry not as tracking devices is not impossible.
Tracking might seem tricky, but there are a few ways, basically a few applications and ways that can help in tracking the phone. They are:
1. Fonemonitor
This is the ultimate tracking app. Whether it be in monitoring the location of loved ones or checking for suspicious activities. It helps track online movements and places without the other person realizing it. And most of all, it is 100% invisible on the target device.
Aside from being a total spy app, the app also helps in finding the location of the target device even if the GPS is turned off.
How to use
- 1. For finding the location, all you need is a working account with the target phone's information.
- 2. Both the target phone and the other phone should have the app signed in.
- 3. In the target phone, the app will disappear.
2. FamiSafe
It is another app that is perfect when your GPS is turned off. Including the location, the app is ideal for monitoring your children and blocking specific sites without anyone realizing it.
All that is required is an account and the application installed on both of the phones. The app uses time zone and other sensor induced information to track the location of a phone.
3. KidsGuard Pro
It is another app that is perfect when your GPS is turned off. Including the location, the app is ideal for monitoring your children and blocking specific sites without anyone realizing it.
All that is required is an account and the application installed on both of the phones. The app uses time zone and other sensor induced information to track the location of a phone.
4. Google Location History
It is another app that is perfect when your GPS is turned off. Including the location, the app is ideal for monitoring your children and blocking specific sites without anyone realizing it.
All that is required is an account and the application installed on both of the phones. The app uses time zone and other sensor induced information to track the location of a phone.
How To Stop Someone from Tracking You
For all the people who find privacy to be sacred, this might be a scary notion. As there are many spy apps available and the biggest of all, your device itself seems to be conspiring against you by tracking your every move. It does feel like the invasion of technology. But there are ways to control this. They are:
1. Google Location
First and foremost is Google that everyone knows and uses with gusto. So there are ways that can help stop Google from tracking you.
According to Google, after turning off location history and activity, it is also necessary to turn off one more setting that is after you are on your Google account, reaching it from Google settings. You go on data and personalization where you find web and app activity.
This is the settings that, when turned off, it will ultimately put a stop to the tracking done by Google as this setting tracks your searches and in Google and maps that may have helped you with your recommendations.
2. Other Ways
Other ways to stop any tracking is by:
- Turning off your Wi-Fi and cellular signals, basically going on airplane mode
- Turning off the GPS
- Disabling phone tracking applications
- Disabling all the apps using location services
After all, if you want to make sure you cannot be tracked, you take out the battery of your phone and shut it down completely as it ensures complete privacy.
Conclusion
However, with this knowledge, we can safely conclude there might be ways that can help us attain the privacy level we want. But meanwhile, the lack of privacy can be used in a positive manner. How you ask well, it can be used in severe incidents like stolen phones, kidnapping, and more.
The question that remains vague is that is the tracking off, or is it not? Are we always being monitored?
The answer to these questions will remain vague, and although tracking someone without their consent is illegal, this is being actively done. So, will it stop you from buying technology-based devices, or will you do nothing about this?
-
Home >
-
Protect >
- Can My Phone Be Tracked With Location Services Switched Off?