How to tell if my phone is being located?

We’re living in a fast-paced world where almost everything is possible if you take the right tool. Location checking on a mobile phone takes place in the background and can go unnoticed.  Your smartphone calculates accurate GPS coordinates and transmit location data. We enable location service when we travel but have you wondered how to tell if your phone is being located. The following guide will tell you some signs indicating someone is checking your location.

How to find out if your phone is being located?

Android and iOS do not notify or give an idication when your phone is being located or someone is checking your location. But if GPS is used by location services, a brief icon will be displayed in the notification bar. Any app or system processes trigger a location check.

Cell service provider

Actually, your mobile service provider can locate you continuously. For your smartphone to ring, chime for a text or be connected to internet, your device should be continuously connected to a cellular tower. The provider keep a centralized record of which phones are connected to which towers. They then route your service through the best-connected tower.

This coordination occurs every few minutes to a few hours, depending on factors such as your usage, your movement, and the geographical location of the tower. Subject to company policy, tower connection logs will be kept for different lengths of time.

Location sharing

Some apps can work properly only when you choose to enable location permission. In such cases, your location will be shared and someone can locate your whereabouts. For instance, Google Maps allows users to share real-time location until you turn this option off. If you have a Google account, you’re ready to share directly within the app or other Google users or via a temporary web link. You’ll see two brieft location notifications that tell you your phone is being located. If you’re using iPhone, People tab inside Find My app enables you to share GPS location.

Remote location service

Other location services disclose your location updates differently. The operating system should tell when the service checks your phone location. Google’s Find My Device provides status on last seen time, network connectivity, IMEI, and location on a map. When this service is enabled, a brief notification is displayed and it can tell someone checks your location.

For iOS users, Find My iPhone can locate a mobile phone remotely. It shows date and time last connected to iCloud, location on a map, approximate battery level and if the device is charging. Similar to Find My Device, brief notification will be shown when your cell phone is being located.

Can someone locate a cell phone location without my knowledge?

Yes, with the help of advanced tools, it’s possible for someone to locate a cell phone location without your knowledge. Spyware is one of the resorts to locate someone without letting them know. But it requires one-time physical access to target device. Also, some phones require help from the mobile service provider to locate the phone based on cellular tower connectivity.

Are there any signs showing someone is checking your location?

Yes, there are some signs on your phone indicating someone is checking your location. If the battery runs out quickly, your phone could be tracked. It will be continually sending data from the phone to the hacker, which makes your phone consumes more power. Also, if you find out your phone feels warm even when you haven’t used it, it may be a sign that it’s secretly transmitting data. One more thing you should pay attention to is if your phone is taking longer than normal to shut down, it could be a sign of spyware.

What to do if your phone is being located?

If you felt like your phone is being located or monitored, you can restart your smartphone. Some cell phone locator and spyware rely on the phone being turned on for long periods of time. By rebooting your phone means that most of them won’t able to locate you. Then, run a reliable spyware removal app and turn off location sharing when you’re not using it to ensure your location isn’t shared with a third-party. Other than that, update your mobile phone if it hasn’t been updated recently to make sure that it has the most recent security patches and delete any app you don’t recognize.

Wrapping up

We’ve covered several ways to tell if your phone is being located. Apart from cell service provider locating you continuously, location sharing and remote location service can locate a mobile phone and find out where you are. If you detect any signs that someone is checking your location, you can reboot your smartphone, turn off location sharing or update it frequently.