213
ICE buys tool to monitor millions of smartphones. Experts say it’s dangerous
(www.independent.co.uk)
this post was submitted on 03 Oct 2025
213 points (100.0% liked)
Privacy
2926 readers
172 users here now
Icon base by Lorc under CC BY 3.0 with modifications to add a gradient
founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
view the rest of the comments
Isn't GPS only one way? Is the phone then sending the data to the carrier?
I'm a bit confused by your question...~~GPS definitely requires communication between your phone and a satellite (i.e. can't track you if your GPS unit is off - maybe you're thinking of satellite imaging?).~~ EDIT: This is actually incorrect, see comments below
With wifi calling, yes, data is being sent to the carrier, but not via a signal that can be triangulated, so the most accurate location data they can gather is your IP address, which a VPN can easily hide.
Or do you mean in terms of generalized location tracking? In which case yes, highly accurate location data is shared by your phone with your carrier by default, just by way of how cellular networks function; no GPS required.
No. GPS is you listening to signals. Your phone can't communicate with sattelites unless you have a satellite phone lol
Well I learned something new today - thanks for pointing that out, honestly it makes a lot of sense. Sorry for the misinformation