Someone is tracking me using geolocation.

Submitted by Ecstatic-Storage3977 t3_11cu4t5 in iphone

I’m not sharing my location in Find My Friends, Snapchat, Facebook, or Instagram. No one but me has my pass code and my phone is on me at all times - no one else has used it. No o e has ever tried to use face recognition to get to it either. I’ve never clicked on suspicious links that spy apps use to install a background app on the phone either. No one has tried to hack my iCloud either as I would’ve been notified if that were the case. It’s alarming and suspicious that they text me though whenever I’m in their area though. It’s as if they are receiving notifications when I am nearby and that is very disturbing. If I had shared my location once before with them, but disabled it across the board can they still track me? I would think they would have to share their location with me to do that and if so, wouldn’t I have been notified if that were the case?

I’m very good at securing my phone and not letting anyone access it so there’s no way they could’ve installed a background GPS or web based spy app because those have to alert the person that they’re being tracked.

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86753097779311 t1_ja516r5 wrote

Could they have an Apple tag or some other untraceable tag on your car?

People get around everything you can think of. Whatever it is it can be disabled.

Sorry you are going through this.

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Dino_Spaceman t1_ja51x8k wrote

Is it a person you know texting you or a company sending you ads?

If the latter - sounds like your phone has a geofence on.
One of your apps is sending location data and selling that to a company.

Do you have your phone through AT&T or Comcast? They can get your location based on connecting to any of their Wi-Fi devices without you sending location data (turn off automatically connect for their Wi-Fi SSID to stop this).

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caolle t1_ja5ark2 wrote

If you're part of a family group and this person is part of said family group, you could be sharing your location that way.

Settings > Family > Location Sharing > and turn off any location sharing you may be doing.

It's possible that this person may have Notifications turned on for Find My when you or someone else enters their area.

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Ecstatic-Storage3977 OP t1_ja5dbov wrote

Replying to caolle (#2,038,317)

I’m not sharing my location at all and I’m not part of a family group. I don’t understand how they could receive notifications though if my locations sharing is turned off. Is it possible for someone to still track me even though I’ve disabled sharing my location? I don’t have any tracking devices on my car either. I’ve driven a friends car and even a rental at one point t and it was happening so I’m inclined to think it’s not a tracking device. If it is it’s well hidden and I’ll find it and press charges but I don’t believe there’s a tracking device.

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SneakyFcknRusky t1_ja5f6gh wrote

Have you ever connected to their Wi-Fi in the past? If you have your phone may briefly connect and they’re logging it, knowing you’ve been in the area.

Try turning off Bluetooth and Wi-Fi when you go by this area in the event that’s being used.

Try disabling all of your location services and see if you receive the message.

It would be useful to know the context of the area you’re going to. Is it rural, urban etc

Do you go past their house on foot or in a car.

If you feel like you’re the victim of stalking though contact the local police.

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Ecstatic-Storage3977 OP t1_ja5oasc wrote

Replying to SneakyFcknRusky (#2,039,093)

There are two points that I pass along the way to work. Both of those points are the locations where the person could be at a given time. I’ve never connected to their wifi either location. It’s more likely that they are getting a notification based on a geofence or something like that maybe. Is it possible that someone can add my telephone number and setup a geofence somehow so when I’m in a particular area they get an alert even if my location services are disabled? How they’re doing is the question because it’s really freaking me out now.

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therenamed t1_ja5rbfq wrote

Its rather simple...

Whilst I do not think this is the case at all..

Leave your phone and watch and all devices at home.. Go for a drive go past, then go hope.. see if you get a text..

Repeat with each device... If your you suspect is true you will get a msg when you have the right device in the car... If this happens take it straight to the police, but I think its the fact they likely the issue is not related to your iphone

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Christos0720 t1_ja5yshr wrote

What kind of vehicle do you have? If it has on star or something similar, they might be able to see your location if they know your login info.

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Elkins45 t1_ja6akcl wrote

This may be a dumb question depending on your relationship, but have you ever considered just asking them how they know you’re near? If they don’t want to answer you’ll know they’re up to no good. Or they just might tell you some perfectly innocent reason you haven’t considered.

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Axelshot t1_ja6f0me wrote

Before you go paranoid and all that good stuff. Have you asked that person in a normal way how he knows you are in that area? Maybe he will just straight up tell you. If he is a friend you can also ask him to stop doing that because you find this type of stalking/tracing really weird.

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Ecstatic-Storage3977 OP t1_ja6kluy wrote

Replying to Elkins45 (#2,045,306)

I think the point is to first find out if they’re indeed tracking me. I wouldn’t expect the person to tell me to be honest. At this point it’s more about finding out if they are so I can secure my phone.

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Spirit98765 t1_ja6lhnn wrote

Does this person ever connected their phone to your car? My phone instantly turns on driver mode when my partner starts our car in the garage.

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ADDandME t1_ja6lpo5 wrote

They can read your Wi-Fi Mac when your near by and have you linked by that.

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FlaaffyPink t1_ja6mknk wrote

Replying to Ecstatic-Storage3977 (#2,040,799)

I don’t know what to suggest that hasn’t already been said, except that maybe—depending on your resources and perceived threat—you might consider hiring a private investigator with digital forensics expertise or a similar professional to find out what’s going on. Will you update us if you figure it out? Sincerely sorry this is happening.

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deep_fried_cheese t1_ja6so40 wrote

If you at least know the person why don’t you just ask them to see what they say?

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bradrlaw t1_ja6t2yc wrote

Does this person work in any way with a communications company or is very tech savvy?

Here is my eli5:

You can track cell phones by looking at the towers they are talking to. Cell phones are always in the background connecting and switching from tower to tower. Thee current tower(s) your phone is connected to is stored on the network so when someone tries to call / text you, the call / text can be routed to the right tower and you can answer.

Now during the process of making a call, the person calling can follow all the steps right up to the one that would complete the call and make your phone ring. By stopping before your phone rings, they can get the tower that would have made the last part of the call and your general location without you ever knowing about it

Source: managed and built a system that did exactly this for consumer measurement about 10 years ago using SS7 protocols. I think some of this might have been patched, but the general vulnerability remains if you have the right connectivity (very difficult for an individual, only providers should have this access).

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mozzamo t1_ja6vea0 wrote

Your friend is texting you? Ask them

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Chizep t1_ja754db wrote

What are your settings for Airdrop?

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user2884 t1_ja7flkk wrote

It’s the government!!! Visit a psychiatrist though before it becomes worse

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allgamefans t1_ja7gx8d wrote

It sounds like you have a routine and someone understand your routine.

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-K9V t1_ja7kh3g wrote

Who and what are you talking about? Your post explains nothing.

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itsarah95 t1_ja7qk3j wrote

OP, does this person text you at other times, or only when you are near their home?

I ask because there have been multiple cases on r/RBI where the person ended up, for example, having carbon monoxide poisoning that made them think things like this were occurring. It would be good to just take that possibility off the table.

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fabrictm t1_ja8898w wrote

It's theoretically possible (although I'm generally not a paranoid person) that someone could've attached some kind of tracking device on your vehicle. Again, not a paranoid person, but the possibility is not zero, mathematically speaking.

Edit: just an idea: google maps also will let you share your location indefinitely, but it will notify you every so often that you're sharing location. If this has started happening recently, and if you have google maps, check in there?

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AutoGeek3000 t1_ja89ypc wrote

When you say that you're in their vicinity, how close are we talking? Bluetooth distance? WiFi distance? 100m? 200m? Knowing how close you're getting could help narrow down the technology that is being used.

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oceanhomesteader t1_ja8b5nd wrote

You seem very focused on it being a technical issue - but do you have a set work schedule, and always take the same path to work? Is it possible they just know your routine?

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DrugiiJa t1_ja8j77h wrote

in what form do you get these "messages"..?

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Kriskao t1_ja95pnr wrote

They could have planted a non Apple device in your car.

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LadyRapunzel t1_ja9coy0 wrote

Have you searched your car for a cell phone? Inside and out?

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Ecstatic-Storage3977 OP t1_jaf3joj wrote

Replying to FlaaffyPink (#2,047,688)

I may just do that for my own sanity I wonder if it’s possible for someone to get a trigger notification if they setup some kind of geofence or whatever you call that so when the target (me) enters that area they get a notification on their end. But then again I’m not sharing my location either so I really don’t understand.

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