How to Tell If Your Cell Phone Is Being Tracked and Monitored by Spy Software

Do you have a friend who's always paranoid about using mobile banking apps, thinking they are not safe? You know there's always this one person who thinks that it's not a good idea despite the accumulating evidence that mobile banking might be safer than online banking. And you know, once in a while, you can give that friend some credit because sometimes you might find yourself in a situation where someone spies on your phone. Of course, it doesn't happen often, but we shouldn't overlook this possibility, and so right now, we will go through a list of things that you should look out for if you want to make sure your phone isn't monitored by spy software.

Why Does Someone Spy on a Phone

If you are wondering how it is possible to spy on a phone, you do not need to look far. There are tons of spy software applications out there that allow their users to spy on someone. And the reason phones can be used to spy on people these days is because we no longer use our phones just for calling. Think about it, you probably have a smartphone that is full of social media apps and other types of software, and you spend a lot more time browsing the Internet on your phone, rather than calling or texting someone. So we transfer a lot of personal data via our phones, and this makes them a great target for spying.

Sometimes, parents might also want to track their children's phones to ensure their safety online and offline. And there are a lot of phone spy apps out there that can help concerned parents with that and such software by itself is not malicious. Technically, you can use spy software to watch over someone or to monitor your own data usage, but we wouldn't have to write this blog post if everything were that ideal, now would we?

What Can Spy Phone Apps Do

Normally, depending on the spy software that is used, different applications can collect different types of information. For example, PhoneSector can keep track of a lot of information, including GPS tracking, reading deleted texts, viewing photo albums, viewing browser history, accessing contacts, and so on. Other spying apps like Highster Mobile or Auto Forward also offer similar features, and while they are promoted as software that can ensure personal security, anyone can easily understand that should they fall into the wrong hands, such apps can cause a lot of trouble.

After all, tracker apps can monitor your phone's performance remotely, as long as the collected data is backed up on a cloud. So if someone is spying on your phone and they have remote access to your data, you might never know that all of your personal information gets exposed. How creepy is that? Therefore, there are certain things that you can pay attention to if you want to check whether anyone is spying on your phone.

How to Tell If a Phone Spy Is Watching You

If someone spies on you, it means there is unwanted software installed on your device. Consequently, when you have unwanted software, you may experience unwanted device behavior, too. Hence, if you see that your phone exhibits random behavioral patterns, you might want to scan it with a mobile security tool. For instance, if your phone flashes up once in a while or emits strange beeping sounds, it could be the first red flag.

In some cases, you do not really have to have a spy app on your phone for it to start acting weird. If you do not review the installed apps often, you might experience random phone behavior, too. In other words, you should be concerned about the software that is installed on your mobile device because constant reviewing helps you improve your phone's performance.

Another thing that you might want to pay attention to is your battery life. These days, smartphone batteries do not boast of a long lifespan, but if your phone is relatively new and your battery dies pretty fast, it could be a sign that someone spies on your phone. Why? Some of the spy apps use a lot of data, and it results in short battery life. And in general, if you see that your battery is draining out fast, you should definitely check the battery use statistics in the phone's menu, to see which apps are using the most of it. You might be in for a surprise on this one. What's more, phones with spy software might be prone to constant shut downs. If your phone restarts frequently even with a full battery, that can also be a sign of unsolicited monitoring.

Finally, we should focus on the prime function of a phone, too. Namely, phone calls. Random background noises and poor connection during phone calls may not always depend on your service provider. They could be caused by spy software as well. Clicking and beeping noises fall into the same suspicious category, too. In other words, anything out of the ordinary could point out to spying.

The same applies to text messaging, too. But please do not mistake this for text phishing. It's one thing when you receive coherent text messages that urge you to share your personal information or transfer various sums of money to unfamiliar people. That's phishing. On the other hand, random characters, numbers, and symbols that don't make any sense might as well be the result of illegal mobile monitoring.

The bottom line is that you need to be on a lookout for unexpected phone behavior, and it is always a good idea to run through the list of the apps that you have installed. Scanning your device with a security tool should help you detect these spy apps, but sometimes you might need to reset your device to factory settings to get rid of the spy software. If that happens, consider backing up your data before you do that. There are different ways to approach phone spy software depending on whether you are an Android or an iPhone user, so choose the removal methods that suit your situation the best.