Did you know your smartphone keeps a running log of your location at all times?
Well, it does, and it does it by default.
If you value your privacy, you can disable location tracking on your phone to prevent others from knowing your every move.
Follow the steps below for the type of phone you’re using to prevent it from keeping track of your location.
Note: The steps listed below might vary slightly depending on the version of the operating system that’s currently installed on your phone. Therefore, you should use these instructions as a general guide.
If you have an iPhone:
1 – Open the Settings app.
2 – Tap Privacy.
3 – Tap Location Services.
4 – Scroll down to the “System Services” section and tap Significant Locations. You should now see a list of all the places you’ve been.
5 – Tap Clear History to delete all the items stored in the location log.
6 – Toggle the setting to Off.
If you have an Android phone:
1 – Open the Settings app.
2 – Tap Location.
3 – Tap Google Location History.
4 – Tap the blue slider beside “Location History”.
5 – Tap Pause.
Note: You will need to scroll down and read the entire warning before you’ll be allowed to toggle the setting to Pause.
6 – Tap Manage Activity and then follow the prompts as they appear to view and clear your stored location history.
That’s all there is to it. Your phone should no longer track and log your location as you move from place to place.
Now that that’s out of the way, check out this short clip from NBC News discussing this very topic of smartphone tracking. It’s a real eye-opener!
Note: As always, you can watch the video at full screen by clicking the “square” icon that will pop up in the lower-right corner of the video after it begins playing.