How To Tell If Your Phone is Being Tracked

Can anyone track my phone, you ask? Well, certainly. Fortunately, there are several ways to tell if your phone’s being tracked. There are also ways to locate such spy and monitoring apps, and remove them through data wipe or factory reset. Read on to learn more.

How Do I Know If Someone Is Tracking My Phone?

There are various ways on how to track someone’s phone and to tell if there’s actually a cell phone tracker or spy software on your device. Mind you, phone tracker apps have become more sophisticated nowadays. They continuously up their game especially in terms of stealth monitoring.

Still, here are some tell-tale signs your phone is being tracked.

• Fast Draining Battery
  Unless your battery is quite old, a rapidly draining battery is a sign you’re being tracked. Spyware performs data extraction activities like taking screenshots, copying texts, recording conversations, and more - all these could eat up a phone’s battery life. In addition, you might also notice your battery is heating up even when your device is in idle mode.
  
  
• Unusual Activities in Standby Mode
  When not in use, your phone shouldn’t be lighting up on its own unless you receive a message, call, or notification. If your device’s screen lights up and no notification pops up, some unusual background activity might be happening.
  
  
• Spike in Data Usage
  If you have a sudden spike in your data usage but your online activities and habits remain the same, then something must be up. Some tracking apps try to send as much extracted data as possible which utilizes large amounts of mobile data. The best tracker apps, however, are more selective in the information they send back to their servers. It might be a good idea to keep track of your monthly data usage as a precaution. This way, you’ll be able to immediately spot unusual spikes.
  
  
• Unprompted Reboots
  If your device regularly reboots unexpectedly, this might be an indication someone has remote admin access to your device. This could also mean the latest app or operating system you have downloaded has a flaw or vulnerability.
  
  
• Unusual Background Noise During Phone Calls
  In this digital age, cell network connections are typically stable and noise-free. So if you hear weird noises or distant voices during phone calls, there’s a possibility someone is monitoring or even recording your conversations.
  
  
• Longer Shut Down Time
  When shutting down your phone, the phone attempts to close active processes. So if it takes unusually long to shut down, spyware might be trying to copy data from your recent phone activity.
  
  
• Increasingly Slower or Unresponsive Device
  If your device, especially if it's a high-end smartphone, is lagging or suddenly running out of storage space, it might be infected with spyware or other malware.
  

How To Locate Phone Tracking Software On Your Phone

Needing to ask ‘how to locate phone tracker app’ might just be as worse as having to ask ‘where is my phone?’ If you see any of the tell-tale signs discussed above, it would be wise to check your device for any malware or spyware. Spy apps have certainly grown more sophisticated, especially the more powerful apps utilizing high-end technology.

Here are some ways to locate and remove spyware from your device. Take note that this might not work for everyone and in some cases, you might need to seek expert help.

For Android Phones

This solution is based on Android 9 operating system devices. If your device is running on a different Android version, there might be differences in the process or the menu layout. Still, the process may be similar enough.

1. Go to Settings then Apps and Notifications.
2. Click on See all apps or something similar.
3. Once the list of installed apps appears, look for suspicious apps or those you don’t remember installing on your device. Some keywords that might help include spy, monitor, track, and trojan.
4. If you find one, look it up and if it proves to be spyware, immediately delete or uninstall the app.

For iOS

It is harder to install spyware on iOS devices. It typically requires jailbreaking the device which means physical access to the phone. In most cases, spyware will track a phone’s location and other activities via iCloud. Hence, changing your iCloud’s password will mostly put a stop to the monitoring software.

There are monitoring apps allowed in the App Store which are utilized mainly as parental control and monitoring tools. Some might, however, utilize them to spy on your iPhone. Simply go to the App Store and look for such apps then cross-check them with the list of your installed apps.

Why Someone May Be Tracking Your Phone

So why would someone want to know your phone location or track a phone’s activities? Well, some might utilize tracking apps for perfectly acceptable reasons while some might use them for malicious purposes.

• Parents
  Parents utilize phone tracker apps as a child monitoring tool. It helps them track their kid’s whereabouts and keep tabs on their online activities. This is mainly to keep kids safe from various threats like cyberbullies, sexual predators, and catfishers.
  
  
• Spouse/Partner
  Some may utilize spy apps to keep tabs on their partners especially when they suspect something unusual going on. It allows the user to see real-time location, text messages, and any other information that could give light to their suspicions. However, we don’t condone such spying.
  
  
• Hackers
  Hackers make use of spy apps or malware to steal information or money from their victims. They may even utilize it to take down a business or an organization. Such hacking, with the exception of ethical hacking, is considered illegal.
  

Common Cell Phone Tracking Apps Used Today

There are several spy apps available on the market today. Mind you, many of such apps are designed as child monitoring tools or for similar purposes. On the contrary to the negative reputation of apps meant for spying on and tracking your phone, several premium mobile phone monitoring tools are designed to ensure safety and security. Here are some of the most widely-used tracker apps as tools on how to track a cell phone.

• Auto Forward
  Auto Forward is a user-friendly tracking app that allows remote connection through OTA (over-the-air) link. It doesn’t require rooting of the target device and can be set up in just three easy steps.
  
  This spy app supports virtually all devices and iOS versions. Auto Forward allows users to access information including text messages, GPS location, call logs, social media accounts, browsing history, emails, and more.
  
  
• Highster Mobile
  Highster Mobile works on all iOS (no jailbreaking needed) and Android devices by establishing a secure connection between the target device and their servers. The extracted data will then be uploaded to their servers, accessible by users anytime.
  
  Highster Mobile provides access to a wide array of features and information. It also supports keylogger and captures full copies of social media conversation, not just snippets. Its enhanced GPS location feature is accurate within just a few feet from its actual location. Plus, it has toll-free technical support for its users.
  
  
• PhoneSpector
  PhoneSpector is another reliable monitoring software offering advanced and smart tracking solutions. Once installed, it’s designed to automatically extract personal information and valuable data from the target device which will then be simultaneously uploaded to a web-based control panel.
  
  PhoneSpector is capable of capturing the activities within the target phone and engagements initiated within any of the third-party phone apps. It provides comprehensive and extensive reports without increased data usage or battery consumption. Above all, it can be installed and utilized without the need for rooting/jailbreaking or altering the default factory settings.