Having your location advertised isn’t the safest endeavor. Thankfully, Apple pays heed to privacy and has many features and options that let you hide your location on an iPhone quite easily.
Here are all the different ways you can hide your location on your iPhone.
• Turn on Airplane Mode.
• Turn on Privacy Restrictions.
• Use another device.
• Turn off Find My.
• Reset your iPhone.
• Check on third-party apps.
In this article, we will go over how you can hide your location on your iPhone. So stay tuned!
Turn On Airplane Mode
Turning on Airplane Mode immediately disables your cellular connection and GPS. With it, your iPhone can’t get tracked or for you to show your location in any way or form. Here’s how.
- Open the Settings app on your iPhone.
- Tap “Airplane Mode” and toggle it on.
If your location is being broadcasted, it’ll immediately start happening again as soon as you turn off Airplane Mode.
Turn On Privacy Restrictions
Apple places great focus on ensuring that sensitive data like your location can only be accessed with applications that have permission. However, sometimes, you may permit an application accidentally.
Or, you might want to hide the location on your iPhone altogether. In either case, here’s how you can do so.
- Open the Settings application on your iPhone.
- Head to “Privacy” > “Location Services“.
- Turn off “Location Sharing“.
Turning off location sharing may lead to some applications like Apple Maps not working properly. Once that happens, you’ll be prompted to turn on “Location Services” for those applications to work again.
Use Another Device
Let’s say you have a work iPhone and a personal one. In this case, you probably don’t want your personal iPhone to be tracked by your employed or any third-party entity. Thankfully, Find My allows you to switch the device that you can be tracked with.
This allows you to hide your location on an iPhone permanently. Here’s how.
- Open the Settings application on your iPhone.
- Tap your profile picture at the top and head to Find My.
- Once there, tap “Use This iPhone As My Location“.
If you do not receive this option on your secondary phone, your device is the one whose location is currently being used, or both devices are not logged in using the same Apple ID.
Turn Off Find My
The Find My application is where individuals most often tend to share their location unknowingly. Plus, it’s the easiest step to miss when you hide your location on an iPhone. Here’s how you can ensure that your location isn’t being shared if you don’t want to on Find My.
- Open the Find My application on your iPhone.
- Move to the Me tab.
- Once there, toggle Share My Location off.
If you don’t want to share your location with a particular individual, here’s how.
- Head to the “People” tab in Find My.
- Once there, select the individual with whom you don’t want to share your location.
- Tap the “Stop Sharing Location” at the bottom of your screen.
When you stop sharing your location with someone, they are not notified and won’t be able to see you on your friends’ list. When you turn it on again, they will receive a notification that you’ve re-enabled location sharing with them.
Reset Your iPhone
If you are worried that your device has been physically compromised and are not sure in what form, be it a nefarious application or your permission being utilized wrongfully, erasing your iPhone is the smartest way to hide your location.
If you aren’t aware of what you’re dealing with, an intruder may have access to your location regardless. A factory erase ensures that everything that may have gone wrong with your iPhone is wiped clean, and there’s no way for any nefarious content exists after.
Here’s how you can reset your iPhone to hide your location.
- Open the Settings application on your iPhone.
- Head to “General” > “Transfer or Reset iPhone“.
- Tap “Erase All Content and Settings“.
- After your iPhone restarts, you’ll be asked to set your iPhone up, and your location will remain hidden.
Check On Third-Party Applications
Third-party applications often may infringe on your location, which may allow them to access it randomly. Therefore, when you’ve downloaded a new application; take a look at its location used to get an idea of whether your location is used or not.
- Open the Settings application on your iPhone.
- Head to “Privacy” > “Location Services“.
- Once there, you’ll see a list of applications. Take a look at them and ensure that each is one you recognize and identify.
Conclusion
You can easily hide your location by following the steps mentioned above. However, the steps you need to take may vary depending on how your location is being shared in the first place.
