The Scary Way Your iPhone Can Be Tracked When It’s Powered Off
As scary as phone-tracking is, its even more frightening to think that your iPhone can still be tracked when its off.
This article is more than 2 years old
It’s no secret that technology has some unexpected features that the public isn’t highly aware of. Most people are aware that having a smartphone on their person means their location could be tracked at any given time. But what about when the device is powered off? For iPhone users, your location can still be located whether the device is on or shut down.
According to a study by the Researchers at the Technical University of Darmstadt in Germany, an iPhone can still be tracked even when the device is off. Not only that, but these smartphones are also susceptible to hacks and breaches when the device isn’t physically in use. Unfortunately, those who believe that turning off your phone could eradicate these problems are wrong. According to this German research, iPhones can be tracked even if they are powered off. Through the study, the researchers could figure out what inside the iPhone was allowing the user to be followed regardless of the device’s status.
The researchers discovered that the cause of this issue was the iPhone’s wireless chips inside the device. The chips were continuously operating regardless of whether the iPhone was being used. 24 hours after the phone is turned off, the wireless chips are still running, allowing them to be tracked or even hacked. Including these processors weren’t a random flaw of Apple engineering, though. The hardworking chips operate long after the phone has been turned off so that the device can be tracked through Find My iPhone or another Apple locator. Unfortunately, specific hackers are learning to infiltrate these processors and gain control of the susceptible iPhones.
Hackers getting into your iPhone doesn’t ring some alarms, but for the most part, Apple users have nothing to worry about. If you have a jailbroken smartphone, there’s more cause for concern due to your device’s susceptibility. Jailbroken phones have more significant security risks because of the software alterations, which hackers could take advantage of more easily. If you’re worried about your device’s safety, reinstalling a regular iOS could help protect your iPhone from future infiltrations.
For those who are worried about location-tracking possibilities, there is not much to be concerned about. Your iPhone should be adequately protected if you update your iOS to its latest version with upgraded security features. The dormant device’s microchips will produce signals for 24 hours to ensure the iPhone can be found if lost. The chips operating for a prolonged period shouldn’t cause concern for ordinary smartphone users. Again, jailbroken phones increase the risk of being tracked when the device is off. The best advice to ward off potential hacks is to download the recent iOS or remove the jailbroken software from your device.
Over the past year, there’s been increasingly more anxiousness around hacking and surveillance. A Milan-based group recently developed spyware that can be implanted on Androids and iPhones. Though the Italian group, RCS Labs, stated that European law enforcement agencies are among their clients, tech companies like Google are skeptical of the Milan company’s motives. Software that can spy on people’s private messages is now a reality, and it’s up to smartphone users to update their security to protect their devices properly.
