How Tech People Are Outsmarting Their Pocket Spy Smartphone
Illustration: Virtual Location, Felix Baynham
Introduction
Here at The Duke of Cyber, we’re big fans of technological innovation. We also know that location tracking apps can be useful—think Uber or GrubHub —but they also raise some serious privacy concerns. The good news is that iOS 15 and beyond has made it easier than ever to manage which apps have access to your location data, so here’s how to do just that!
The iPhone and iPad are location-aware devices, which means they’re capable of figuring out where you are. This feature can be extremely useful, but it can also lead to privacy and security problems.
- iPhone and iPad are location-aware devices
- Location can be useful
- Location can be dangerous
- Location can be used to pinpoint lost/stolen devices
- Location can be used to track you
- Location can be be used to know your next move based on patterns
You may not think about it, but your iPhone and iPad and smart devices are location-aware devices. They know where you are at any given time. You have a supercomputer in your pocket at all times without realizing. An article from last year states that the iPhone 6 was 32,000 times more powerful than any device in the era of Apollo 11 Guidance Machines, now we’re 9 iterations from that model so imagine it’s fast ability to geolocate and process data.
This is a useful feature for apps that have location-based functionality—such as mapping programs or ride-sharing services—but it can also be dangerous if someone else has access to this information. For example, if a thief steals your phone and gains access to the app installed on it, they could use this feature to track your precise location and find out where you spend most of your time.
Fortunately, there are ways to protect yourself from these security risks while still taking advantage of all the benefits that come with being able to pinpoint exactly where you’re standing at any given moment:
- Allowing any application full access to your photos can put you at risk
- Allowing the default location services on IOS iPhone will lead to all your movements being tracked, check out this article for more
- Allow location access per application to be set to “Never” or “While Using the App” Only
- Enabling “Significant Locations” on Location Services is not a smart idea, turn it off
- Turn-off iPhone Analytics
If you want to turn off location services for a specific device, navigate to Settings > Privacy > Location Services and toggle location permissions for each application. You might want to do this for an app that simply has no need to access your location (like task management app) or an app that you trust but has no need for constant monitoring (like a social media app).
If you want to manage the settings for one particular application the privacy settings is the best location. To limit access to your current iCloud access click on Apple ID and verify that only your devices are logged into your account. This can be tedious process but once it’s done you will learn to take ownership over the data that your device produces to ensure that you’re protecting yourself, especially if you have kids.
You can also turn off Location Services entirely from this screen, which we’d recommend if you’re worried about tracking your every move by these apps. However, keep in mind that some apps won’t work without location services; others may have limited functionality.
- Turning off location services will reduce battery life
- Certain apps will stop working if location services are turned off
- Some apps will continue to track your location even if location services are turned off
How to avoid having your precise movements tracked by apps on your iPhone or iPad
- Turn off location services for individual apps
- Turn off location services for all apps
- Turn off location services for your entire device
If you want to turn off location services for a specific device, navigate to Settings > Privacy > Location Services and toggle the switch for that individual app off. You might want to do this for an app that simply has no need to access your location (like a task management app) or an app that you trust but has no need for constant monitoring (like a social media app).
Conclusion
We recommend turning off location services altogether instead of just for individual apps. If you’re concerned about your security and privacy, it’s better to disable this feature entirely than risk having your every move tracked by apps on your iPhone or iPad.
–Christian Galvan