GPS Tracking: How Your Phone Becomes an Unwitting Spy

Recent research has revealed a troubling trend: smartphones can be used for covert surveillance of users, creating highly accurate maps of their homes. The exploitation of GPS data by various apps allows partially processed information to be collected without the device owner’s knowledge. This data enables the identification of a user’s surroundings with an impressive accuracy of 99.6%, and can track a person’s activity in different environments with up to 87% accuracy. The information gathered can be used to create detailed floor plans with minimal error.

Currently, this vulnerability affects about 90% of Android users. Researchers are concerned that such data may already be used by intelligence agencies, such as the U.S. National Security Agency (NSA), to monitor and analyze user activity.

Although the study focused only on Android devices, experts believe that other smartphones that allow apps access to GPS data may also be vulnerable. This means iPhone users are at risk as well. According to specialists, the only way to fully protect yourself is to stop using smartphones altogether.

The research covered an extensive period and included data collection in various geographic locations, including mountainous regions and even cruise ships. Based on the data obtained, it is possible to accurately determine elements of interior layouts such as elevators, staircases, hallways, and rooms, highlighting the serious threat to user privacy.