We all carry smartphones around with us, and odds are your phone has a GPS built-in that allows you to use things such as Google Maps to find your way around the area you are in. Whilst this is very handy when you need it, many times apps are using your location as a way of tracking you, normally to serve ads, or sell that data on to third parties. Thankfully, there are ways to limit your phone’s GPS tracking, and this article we will explain just how you can do that.
Reviewing location settings
Both Android and iOS will track your location, but there are some settings you can disable to keep this to a minimum. Often, these mobile operating systems will track your frequent locations, such as your home and workplace. You can turn this off, and even clear your location history. Here is how:
iOS
Here is how to disable these settings and clear your history on iOS devices.
- Go to “Settings” and then “Privacy”.
- Then make your way to “Location Services” and scroll down to “System Services”
- From here, choose “Significant Locations”, this will show you where you have been, and here is also an option to turn that setting off.
- You can then also clear your history by tapping “Clear History” on the same page.
Android
And for the Android users out there, here is a quick walkthrough of how to disable these settings.
- Go to “Settings” and look for “Location”.
- From this screen, you can disable the use of your location at the top. Simply tap it to turn off “Use Location”.
- To delete your location history, towards the bottom of the page is “Advanced” tap that and then “Google Location History” and follow the steps your device gives you.
Thankfully, as you can see, limiting your phone’s GPS tracking is not all that difficult, regardless of which device you use.
Review app permissions before installing
If you want more control over how your device’s GPS is being used, it is vital that you always review the permissions asked for by an app when installing it. Whilst it makes sense that something like Google Maps would require that information, something like a game shouldn’t need that information.
This goes for more than just GPS as well, many apps will want access to things like your microphone and camera despite having no real use for them. If you come across apps that do this, you are best off not installing them. As they could be a threat to your privacy. Well-developed apps with no ulterior motive will only ever ask for the bare minimum of permissions needed. You will have to decide which apps deserve certain permissions, but the choice is always ultimately up to you.
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