How to Curb Location Tracking

Our location is being tracked mercilessly today, in several ways. In the digital age, location data is among the most sensitive information we share, providing a record of our daily lives that can reveal where we live, who we associate with, and our personal routines. For app developers, marketers, and even law enforcement, this data is a goldmine for the ‘app economy’. Today I’ll talk about the most common sources of location data and give you some tips for limiting the tracking.

How Location Data is Tracked and Monetized

Our location data is collected through various channels, each with its own set of privacy implications:

• Smartphones: Location-based apps, from mapping to weather and fitness, often collect precise location data. Many app developers use software development kits (SDKs) to share location data with advertisers or data brokers in exchange for money. Some SDKs even track users via Bluetooth beacons indoors. Once shared, this data can be sold to third parties, from marketers and hedge funds to government agencies.
• Automated License Plate Readers (ALPRs). Automated License Plate Reader tech is everywhere now. Fixed ALPRs capture your location as you pass by and can even identify unique details like bumper stickers. ALPR’s mounted to vehicles may also be capturing things like political yard signs.
• Facial recognition. Digital cameras are popping up everywhere, too, including video doorbells on people’s homes. These cameras are usually connected to the internet and managed by companies who don’t properly protect the data or just outright sell it. And when combined with facial recognition, it can be used to identify you and track your movements.
• Cars. Almost all newer cars include built-in GPS and cellular modems, which can track your movements continuously. And it shouldn’t surprised you to know that electronic “EZ Pass” devices are queried at more than just tool booths.
• Browser Tracking: Websites often request location permissions (even when they don’t really need it). And even without you giving permission to access your location, your rough location can often be inferred using IP address geolocation.
• Wi-Fi/Bluetooth: The Wi-Fi and Bluetooth radios in your smartphone, tablet and other electronics can be used to track your location in public areas like malls, big box stores or airports.

This data isn’t limited to businesses. Law enforcement and intelligence agencies (including foreign ones) can access bulk location data without traditional warrants, bypassing the Fourth Amendment in the US. Such unrestricted access can enable monitoring for purposes beyond our control.

The Risks of Location Tracking

Location data, when left unchecked, can expose people to a range of risks, from surveillance to physical threats:

• Surveillance and Profiling: Your movements can reveal not only where you live but also patterns in your daily life, making it possible for outsiders to deduce intimate details about your habits and preferences. A famous example involved the fitness app Strava, which published a public heat map that inadvertently exposed the locations of U.S. military bases worldwide.
• Outing and Blackmail: Even seemingly harmless data can be used maliciously. In one case, location data was linked to a Catholic priest’s use of Grindr, leading to his public outing. For others, frequent visits to sensitive locations, such as medical or rehab facilities, could be exploited for blackmail or public shaming. And with the recent abortion rights rollback in the US, your location could reveal when you seek reproductive care outside your state resulting in serious legal consequences.
• Physical Safety: Patterns in location data can facilitate stalking or physical threats. Kidnappers, jilted lovers and stalkers, for instance, can use these patterns to pinpoint a target’s frequented locations, like a favorite cafe or grocery store, to avoid heavily guarded places like home or work. And of course, this could also be used to target kids. Ugly stuff.

The future applications of location data are equally concerning. Insurance companies could use location data to assess risky behavior, potentially leading to increased premiums based on inferred habits, like frequenting fast-food restaurants or skydiving venues.

Curbing Location Tracking

Location tracking can be difficult to prevent in many cases. You can’t disable the cellular modem in your car that’s tattling on you incessantly – it would void the warranty and undermine important safety features. You likely can’t opt out of tracking, either – at least not until we get some privacy laws. Similarly, you can’t really avoid facial recognition, ALPRs or toll booth trackers – that’s going to require pushing back with your local government.

However, you can limit other types of location tracking. Here are some tips:

• Limit App Permissions: Only grant location access to trusted apps, and restrict access to “While Using the App.” For non-essential services, like weather, share only an approximate location. See these articles for help: Google Android, Apple iOS.
• Revoke or Reset Ad Identifiers: iOS users can revoke Ad IDs entirely, while Android users can rotate or reset theirs periodically. This simple action can reduce profiling based on your device’s unique identifier. Click here for info on how to do this for both iOS and Android.
• Turn Off Wi-Fi and Bluetooth When Not in Use: Both can enable tracking in public spaces, so disable them when they’re not needed. I realize this can be difficult – people use them all the time. You can, however, try to obfuscate your wireless IDs: iOS, Android.
• Use a Faraday Case: If you’re going to go somewhere and you would rather that no one know about it, your best bet is just to leave your phone at home. However, you can also put it in a special type of bag that can block most of the signals. A good Faraday case blocks all radio signals, making it basically useless. But just turning off WiFi and Bluetooth via the phone’s settings doesn’t always work – even turning the phone off may not do it. (“Off” is a relative term, it turns out.)
• Check out EFF’s Atlas of Surveillance: To understand more about how location data is used by law enforcement, tools like the Electronic Frontier Foundation’s Atlas of Surveillance can provide valuable insights.

Our privacy is eroding at an alarming rate, and location tracking in particular is running rampant. Sadly, there’s a lot of it that we can’t directly control or prevent. Until we can enshrine our right to privacy with strong laws, you can support the organizations that are fighting for your privacy rights every day.