Smartphone Safety

ATTENTION: For all of you new cell phone owners out there, be aware your smartphone may be spying on you. Do you use Facebook, text messaging, or browse the internet on your mobile device? If so, your exact location is being recorded, logged, and viewed by the police and other authorities. This may sound frightening at first, but don't be afraid! Once you gain some knowledge about smartphone tracking, you'll see there are many ways you can safely use your new gadget.

The process of tracking

Figure 1: Cell phone tower

The location of your cell phone is monitored using global positioning system (GPS), a technology that uses satellites to find a person's location. GPS is used in various different forms but one of it's most common uses is in smartphones, such as iPhones and Androids. A smartphone is another term for a cell phone that has similar features to a personal computer. Throughout the world, there are five billion people who own smartphones, and almost every single one is equipped with a GPS feature (6). Even though you cannot see the GPS, most smartphones contain tiny GPS chips, which communicate with cell phone towers using  radio signals (3). Have you ever seen a cell phone tower like the one in Figure 1 driving down the highway? Cell phones towers play a crucial role in the process of GPS tracking (2). The process of pinging launches the transmission of information by sending the location of the smartphone from the wireless device to cell towers located in the area. Pings are sent whenever the smartphone user makes or receives phone calls, sends or receives text messages, accesses map, or  uses the internet, which are all actions that can be controlled by you when attempting to prevent GPS tracking (6).



Figure 2: IPhone home screen

Prevention tips
Here are a few different steps you can take to prevent others from tracking your smartphone and viewing your location. The easiest and most effective way is to turn your phone off when you're not using it. A cell phone can not possibly be tracked in any when it is powered down, because activities such as texting and calling are not available (6). Another way to prevent tracking is to change the settings of your cell phone. Have you ever changed the background of your phone to a cute picture of your favorite animal? Or turned your cellphone to silent when you're at the movie theater? If so, you've made changes to your settings before. Figure 2 is a screenshot of an iPhone's home screen that shows where the "settings" icon is found on Apple devices. Hidden in all of the different menus on your cell phone are a bunch of different settings that give your phone permission to know your location. The good news is you have the power to tell your phone "NO!" Click the link below to watch a video or follow step-by-step instructions that show you how to change your settings (5). http://www.abc15.com/news/science-tech/disable-tracking-settings-on-phone-how-your-phones-operating-system-buries-ad-tracking-settings

Who accesses your location
Imagine a bank near your house is robbed, and the criminal is on the run. Wouldn't you want the police to catch the criminal as soon as possible? GPS information can be accessed by law enforcement and other government agencies, such as the Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security to catch wanted criminals, protect you, and ensure the safety of our nation. What if you could access the same information as the police? Would you track down the members of your favorite boy band or a famous athlete? To prevent Harry Styles or Drew Brees from being followed around by mobs of fans, access is limited to people with authority. Just as police officers access GPS coordinates to locate criminals, they also use the same information to rescue individuals in danger (7). The access to personal information, such as a person's daily activity can sometimes be seen as a violation of privacy. For this reason, there are laws put in place to protect your privacy. For example, "The Fourth Amendment guarantees the right of the people to be free from "unreasonable searches and seizures." Legislation, such as this one laid out in the Constitution of the United States, prevents law enforcement from abusing their power (6).

As you've learned today, you can protect your privacy by following a few simple steps. Next time you text your best friend, call your parent, or check what's new on Facebook, don't forget to think about how you can do so safely.
 

References

(1) Cell phone tower [Illustration]. (2015). Retrieved from the Salem Press

            Encyclopedia of Science.

(2) Ginn, M. (2015). Cell phone network design.  Salem Press Encyclopedia of

            Science. 1-2

(3) Hwang, S., & Yu, D. (2012). GPS localization improvement of smartphones using built-in sensors. International Journal of Smart Home, 6, 1-8. Retrieved from http://www.sersc.org/



(4)IPhone home screen [Illustration]. (2015). Retrieved from http://www.technobuffalo.com/2015/02/18/our-home-screens-heres-a-look-at-the-technobuffalo-staffs-iphone-layouts/

(5) KMGH.com staff. (2013, November 26). Disable tracking settings on phone: How your phone's operating system buries ad, tracking settings. Retrieved from http://www.abc15.com/news/science-tech/disable-tracking-settings-on-phone-how-your-phones-operating-system-buries-ad-tracking-settings

(6) McNichol, A. (2013). Privacy in the age of smartphones: a better standard for GPS tracking. Arizona State Law Journal, 45, 1277-1296

(7) Steele, C. (2012). How police track your phone. PC Magazine. 1.