We are living in an era where things are happening with the finger tap. The technology in this age is way beyond the imagination. It’s no surprise to say that technologies like Smartphones and apps have made our life easier.
With the help of mobile apps, we can easily find cabs, order food, shop online products even searching for a life partner is no longer a challenge. You can use dating apps to find your perfect match.
But, everything comes along with certain associated risks and the same is the case with mobile apps.
In this blog, I will discuss how your mobile apps are tracking your location unnecessarily. I will also outline how these apps are selling your data to make money and what you should do to stop these apps from tracking your location.
Table of Contents
Is turning on apps’ location dangerous?
Turning on your apps’ location is not always dangerous. But, if an app is unnecessary tracks your location then it could violate your privacy. To understand this, you have to review all your installed apps.
For example, if you’re using a cab app then it is crucial for the app to track your location but, if a gaming app is constantly asking for your location then it’s complete nonsense.
Be sure that for specific apps it is important to track location otherwise, those apps will no longer function. However, some apps track your location without any reason to sell this data to the third-parties for money-making.
You should immediately stop such apps from recording your location data to secure your travel history from intruders.
Which apps can track my location?
Whether you’re using iPhone or Android, certain apps will track location. If apps including Google Maps, Uber, Careem, and Find My iPhone, are tracking you then it’s fine since these apps cannot work without recording your location. Similarly, certain dating apps may also ask your permission to turn on location for better user experience.
But, it’s totally up to you whether you allow permission or not for a dating app. iPhone offers a customized option for user privacy. This option enables users to turn on location only when you’re using the app. It means that no app can track your location all the time when you’re not using it.
How to stop apps to track your location- iPhone
If you’re an iPhone user then you can follow these quick and easy steps to stop applications from recording your location.
- Go to settings > Privacy
- Select Location Services
- Turn of Location Services.
Note: if you don’t want to stop all the apps from tracking you then you can select the option “While using”. This option will allow the app to track you only when you’re using it. This option is good for apps like Uber, Careem, and Google Maps. Moreover, you can also select another option “Never” for gaming, dating, or weather apps which don’t really need to track your location to function properly.
Can a US VPN stop these apps from tracking your location?
Whether you’re using the US VPN or any other VPN the function remains the same. A VPN will only encrypt your traffic and change your IP address. These apps track your location with your granted permission at the time of installation. The best way to stop them from recording your location is to enable the “While using” option or turn off the device’s location.
How to stop apps to record your location- Android
There are various phone makers that run Android software therefore, the settings may slightly differ. For example, the process for LG phones will be different from Huawei. However, for the latest Android version you can follow the steps below to stop apps from tracking your location:
- Move to Settings> Advanced
- Select App Permissions
- Choose Location
- A list of the location-based apps will appear
- Turn off the apps that you don’t want to track your location.
Note: Unlike iPhone, Android doesn’t offer customized options to set your location preferences. There are no options available for “While using” and “Never”. You can either turn off your location or simply turn it on.
What happens when you turn off your location on Android?
If you’re turning off your device’s location then be sure that you will no longer track your device when missing. Also, apps like Google Maps, Uber, Careem and other location-based services will not run on your device.
The best way to turn off location on Android is to toggle off specific apps only. To do this you can go to settings > apps and notifications > permission toggle off location.
Does turning off location history stop Google from tracking you?
According to various new researches, turning off your location history doesn’t stop Google from tracking you. You have to go the extra mile to stop the search giant from recording your location. Here’s how to do it using an iOS browser or desktop:
- Sign in your Google account
- Open the top-right menu and find Personal Info & Privacy
- Select Go to My Activity
- Click Activity Controls in the left-hand navigation
- Toggle off where you find ‘’Web & App Activity”
If you’re using an android phone then follow the following steps to stop Google from tracking your location:
- Open Google settings from the phone
- Move to Google account
- Tap where you find Data & Personalization
- You can see and toggle off Web & App Activity there.
Conclusion
Mobile apps are excellent because they can let you enjoy a more personalized experience. However, allowing apps’ access to your personal information, including location tracking can be dangerous. It is important to limit location access for particular apps only. I hope that after reading this blog you have got a better idea on how to stop apps from tracking your location. Moreover, you can also keep your network secure by using trusted antivirus and VPN software.
