What Are Cell Phone Trackers & How Do They Work – 2024 Guide
We are living in an age where cellphones are more important than most of our possessions than some of our more valuable possessions. This stems from the fact that cellphones often store sensitive information along with sentimental pictures or messages. Those combined can make losing a cellphone feel very disturbing. The thought that our privacy is being invaded by somebody who is in the possession of that phone can induce feelings of extreme anxiety. Although the usual answer of “just be more careful with your things” rings true for those of us who are less wary of our possessions, it won’t get our phone back. What will help are tools whose sole intention is assisting with locating and retrieving our phones. This role is left to cell phone trackers and in the following article, we will cover what they are and how they work.
What is a cell phone tracker?
Most of the explanation is in the name. In simple terms, it’s a piece of software or hardware that’s dedicated to tracking down your cellphone’s location on demand. Mobile phone tracking itself is a process of identifying the location of our mobile phone. Cell phone trackers come in different forms. They can be online services, installed software, or physical attachments even. The ability to track doesn’t depend on the phone’s location or whether it’s moving. However, the way it works differs greatly depending on the approach taken.
The standard software is pre-installed on each phone and will be elaborated on below. However, if you wish to get third-party software for added security check out www.phonetracker.com. It will give you some extra options such as downloading contacts remotely, which can help in case you opt into deleting the phone’s files through other means.
How do cell phone tracker apps work?
The applications used for cell phone tracking work by activating a GPS tracking system that is supposed to pinpoint the location of your phone. The use of GPS is a reoccurring aspect of these applications. Which makes sense as GPS uses satellites to provide an accurate location of the item possessing GPS. The addition of GPS to phones has been standard for quite a while now, being used in several applications. The system itself functions by having satellites send signals down to the receiver that’s installed on the phone. That signal is received and the data received through it will calculate the location of the targeted device.
The online mobile trackers work in a similar way. The role GPS plays in these tools shouldn’t be underestimated. It’s the cornerstone of an accurate source of information for many functional aspects of our phones.
Recovering Android
The recovery of Android phones comes with some built-in functionality. In case you lose your Android device, you will be able to manipulate it through Find My Device. The option is automatically turned on but it’s better to check if it got turned off for any reason. To check if Find My Device is turned on check your phone’s settings.
There are a couple of things you can do through Find My Device. The first and primary purpose is finding the location of the Android device. This utilizes GPS to give precise coordinates to software. Data received is showcasing proper information no matter where we utilize it. Another use we can get from this tool is as a remote locking mechanism. This can be useful if we wish to reinforce the security our phone’s security until we find its location through a cell phone tracker. Lastly, you can also use the software to erase all of your sensitive data and remove any files from the phone.
The requirements Find My Device has are for the phone to be turned on, signed into a Google Account, have its location turned on, have Find My Device turned on. The tool can also play a sound from your phone at full volume for 5 minutes, assisting you in locating it once you are in the vicinity of the phone.
Recovering iPhone
For iPhone users, Find My will provide you with the ability to locate and play a sound on any missing Apple device. These include iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Mac, and all the other devices from the brand. It extends to equipment such as AirPods as well so this can come in handy not only as a cell phone tracker but a locator for the entire ensemble of items you have. The added ability this tool has is giving the exact distance between you and the item, having some more accuracy to it. This does require you to turn on the Precise Location option in the Find My app’s settings.
The tracking of iPhones can also be executed through iCloud. You just need to log in, enter accurate details for your phone and get information on its location in just a few seconds.
The supported iPhone can be found by Find My app for up to 24 hours after it’s been turned on. However, associated headphones and earphones have to be online and connected to Bluetooth to be detected.
As far as checking the location itself, simply enter Find My app and tap on Devices at the bottom of the screen. This will give you a list of devices that your app can locate, click on the one you wish to know the location of. Detectable devices will show up on the map once selected, with accurate distance if you have Precise Location turned on. Otherwise, the app will put out a message saying “No location found” under the device’s name. You can select Notify When Found option, this will make sure the app notifies you once the device has been found.
Conclusion
The utility of cell phone tracker software is obvious. The frequent paranoia that haunts us every time we grab our pocket and don’t feel the phone there can at least be slightly alleviated by knowing that it can be located quickly. Knowing which app to use and how is important so make sure to get acquainted with your phone’s corresponding tracker. If you prefer to keep it old school, physical trackers are also available but they don’t necessarily offer more protection. Overall, make sure to set up all requirements the tracker could need right now and avoid issues later.
