In this digital age, maintaining our privacy should be a major concern of ours. Because today we use technology for almost everything, and our devices have become our best friends. This represents a major risk factor as hackers only need to enter one of your devices to access all information stored on all of your devices.
It’s scary to think that someone could track your online activity, edit your profile, and then use this information against you. Hackers usually target cell phones as they are easier to track down. Of course, your laptop and computer can also be spied on, but that’s another story.
This article will show you how to prevent smartphone tracking and maintain your privacy.
PREVENT GOOGLE FROM MONITORING YOUR MOBILE PHONE
One of the most popular Google services is Google Maps. This online service allows users to pinpoint their exact location or check where they are currently.
To use this service, you need to activate the Location option on your smartphone. This will allow Google to track your location via your mobile.
While this feature is very useful, it also represents a security breach as someone can interfere with your connection and find out your exact location.
The following steps will show you how to prevent Google from tracking your mobile phone:
- Go to your mobile’s Settings.
- Choose the location.
- Scroll down and tap Google Location History.
- Drag the slider to the left or tap that option.
- A dialog box with two options will appear.
- Tap OK.
After completing these steps, tap Manage Tasks, which is at the bottom.
Then, tap the menu icon (three dots or vertical lines in the top right corner of the screen). Next, look for Settings in the drop-down menu and tap on it.
Scroll through the location settings and tap Delete all location history.
After tapping on that option, a window will pop up asking if you are sure you want to delete all location history permanently. Tap the checkbox next to “I understand and want to delete” and finish the process by tapping Delete.
These steps will ensure that your phone stops being tracked by Google.
USE AIRPLANE MODE TO PREVENT SOMEONE FROM LOCATING YOUR MOBILE PHONE
A simple alternative that will allow you to block anyone currently monitoring your phone requires you to enable airplane mode on your smartphone.
Airplane mode is a built-in feature that can disable the service and network. Aside from that, you can use it to disable GPS, your cellular network, and all other connections.
In case you want to use airplane mode to stop tracking your smartphone, all you need to do is locate the airplane mode icon.
To do this, drag the app menu down from the top of the screen. Once you find the airplane mode icon, tap on it. Airplane mode then immediately disables the network and service, preventing anyone from tracking the mobile phone.
If you can’t find the airplane mode icon, you’ll need to find it in your Settings and add it to the apps menu.
Go to your phone’s Settings and tap Connections. Here you will find airplane mode (or airplane mode, depending on the version of your smartphone’s operating system), which you can activate by tapping its icon.
USE LOCATION SERVICES TO STOP SMARTPHONE MONITORING
This method is only available for iPhone users.
Go to your phone settings and tap Privacy. Then, search for Location Services and select the option. The final step requires you to turn off Location Services.
As soon as you turn off location services, your phone will immediately stop sharing your location with any app that may be using it.
KEEP YOUR PRIVACY AND DISABLE LOCATION MONITORING
These three methods are guaranteed to prevent anyone from tracking your smartphone. Note that there are several tracking methods, some of which also include malware.
With this in mind, you need to be very careful with the apps you download and install on your device. The safest places to download your mobile software are official app stores, such as the Google Play Store for Android and the App Store for iOS.
So, avoid downloading third-party software from other sources as it can easily get infected with malware that you won’t even notice until it’s too late. Meanwhile, hackers can use this malware to steal your private information, including your location.
