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How to hide your location
- Thread starter 3Bier
- Start date
kejlyCZ
Android Enthusiast
If application asks for "Access coarse location" (Wi-Fi and cellular) or "Access fine location" (GPS), there are (at least) 4 way to disable it:
- disable GPS and wireless position in Settings / Location & security, uncheck "Use wireless networks" and "Use GPS satellites" (but this will also make other programs, that use position, like GPS navigation, not working)
- don't install this apps
- ask developer to remove this permissions. Think about this, that most applications use this to set right position (Weather) or to show ads (freeware apps are paid by this)
- try to recompile the app (if you have .apk) : Lock down your Android APK permissions – Intrepidus Group - Insight
- disable GPS and wireless position in Settings / Location & security, uncheck "Use wireless networks" and "Use GPS satellites" (but this will also make other programs, that use position, like GPS navigation, not working)
- don't install this apps
- ask developer to remove this permissions. Think about this, that most applications use this to set right position (Weather) or to show ads (freeware apps are paid by this)
- try to recompile the app (if you have .apk) : Lock down your Android APK permissions – Intrepidus Group - Insight
What on your phone is disseminating your location?
Or is this a tinfoil hat question? If you're paranoid then short of blocking all RF transmission and reception there will be some way of finding you if your phone is on and it's communicating with the towers.
chocophile
Member
Two words: Flight Mode. 
don't want the wifey finding out when you're at the g/f's house, huh? lol
...or any of the other abbreviations. Heard the latest? The CIA have assembled a special department to assess and combat cyber leaks a la Wikileaks, which is called, I'm not kidding you: "WTF"...
LOL!
... although... they're doing it on taxpayer's money of course!
What about the app "My Fake Location". Works fine for me.
Sure, but the question is: WHO is being fooled? THEM' or you...
Have you independently tested and verified? Or is this from those slimming cream folks again...?
HoochieCoo
Well-Known Member
This kind of question always cracks me up. Hide your location from who? The Man? Your spouse? Aliens? Dr Evil?
The moment you turn your phone on, some one, if they wanted, could track you. At the very least by cell triangulation.
As far as marketers using my location to target ads... FINALLY!!! I am a 40+ year old man who has spent a lifetime of staring at ads on my TV, computer, cell phone, magazines, billboards, bathroom stalls and 1000 other places. The vast majority of the ads aren't even relevant (womens hygiene products, makeup, etc...). Honestly, if I have to see ads, maybe now they will be relevant to my age, gender and location.
I just read an article that retailers are combating in store smartphone use by targeting ads when you do a specific product lookup when in a certain location. So... you could be standing in Home Depot and do a Google search. Lowes could detect that and also include their "special" online price for the product in the lookup. That's cool.
Off my soapbox. Sorry.
The moment you turn your phone on, some one, if they wanted, could track you. At the very least by cell triangulation.
As far as marketers using my location to target ads... FINALLY!!! I am a 40+ year old man who has spent a lifetime of staring at ads on my TV, computer, cell phone, magazines, billboards, bathroom stalls and 1000 other places. The vast majority of the ads aren't even relevant (womens hygiene products, makeup, etc...). Honestly, if I have to see ads, maybe now they will be relevant to my age, gender and location.
I just read an article that retailers are combating in store smartphone use by targeting ads when you do a specific product lookup when in a certain location. So... you could be standing in Home Depot and do a Google search. Lowes could detect that and also include their "special" online price for the product in the lookup. That's cool.
Off my soapbox. Sorry.
wayrad
Android Expert
Is it trackability you're worried about, or targeted ads? A cell phone has to check in with nearby towers (whose locations are of course known) in order to work, and there's nothing you can do about it if you want to use the phone for its intended purpose.
If you want to stop apps from phoning home or serving you ads, there are apps like Droidwall and Adfree that are available for use with rooted phones. I doubt whether it's possible to keep Google from ever getting the location, though, if you're using the phone in a normal manner.
If you want to stop apps from phoning home or serving you ads, there are apps like Droidwall and Adfree that are available for use with rooted phones. I doubt whether it's possible to keep Google from ever getting the location, though, if you're using the phone in a normal manner.
Depends on how they are tracking your location, and whether the game requires that to work.
An offline game that does not require location should not even ask for the permission. If it does then you can deny the permission, but frankly I would avoid an app that wants location access when it's not needed for its function (note though that with some apps and some Android versions you may need to enable location for bluetooth features to work, so there may be reasons an app wants location access which are not obvious).
An online game will be able to infer something about your location from your IP address (though not very precisely: it tells them more about how your provider organises their infrastructure than about where you are, and may be hundreds on km from your actual location). But that will tell them what country you are in, so if that is what you are trying to hide then a VPN would be the simplest solution.
At the other extreme, something like Pokemon Go needs to know your precise location to work, and there's nothing you can do about that apart from not play.