How do you know that you are being followed through your smartphone?

[Brother]

Safety comes first. With the help of short system codes, you can find out about the phone settings and understand whether your SMS and data are reliably protected, whether someone is watching you.

* # 21 *​

Thanks to this code, you can find out if you have connected call forwarding, SMS and other data. The screen will display the status of different types of call forwarding and the number to which the data is transferred. Usually, jealous spouses and parents set up such forwarding in order to protect the child from spam and criminals. Most often, the victims are the elderly, who lent a stranger a phone for one call. As a result, outsiders will be able to find out everything about the place of residence, social circle, habits and daily routine of a person, and in some cases they will have access to the victim's financial resources.

* # 62 *​

Dial to find out where calls, SMS and data are forwarded if it is impossible to reach you. Most likely, you have enabled voice call forwarding to one of your mobile operator's numbers (voice mail).

* # 06 *​

A universal code to disable all types of call forwarding from your phone. It is convenient to use it before you find yourself in roaming - then you will not be charged for calls, which are transferred to voicemail by default.

Using this code, you can find out the IMEI (International Mobile Equipment Identifier) - the international identifier of mobile equipment. Knowing the identification number of your smartphone, you can find it if your phone is stolen. It is automatically transmitted by the device to the operator's network when connected, even if there is another SIM card in the phone. If someone knows your IMEI number, the person can find out what your smartphone is: model, specifications, etc.

What else?​

There are special codes with which you can track your location, as well as determine if someone is following you. To do this, you must have the netmonitor utility on your phone. Enter one of the codes:

for iPhone: * 3001 # 12345 # *

for Android: * # * # 4636 # * # * or * # * # 197328640 # * # *

Step 1. Go to the UMTS Cell Environment tab, then go to the UMTS RR info and write down all the Cell ID values. These are the numbers of the base stations located nearby. The phone will connect by default to the one that gives it the best signal.

Step 2. Return to the main menu, go to the MM info tab, then to Serving PLMN. We write down the Local Area Code (LAC) values.

Step 3. Using these two values and a regular site (fourth tab from the left), you can determine the location on the map of the base station to which your phone is connected.

Suspicion should be aroused by mobile base stations: KamAZ trucks or minibuses with a huge antenna. They usually work at festivals, as well as in places where there is no cellular network coverage. If such a machine appears nearby for no reason, perhaps the operator wants to improve the signal quality or foreign spies are operating somewhere near you. Or maybe we are talking about industrial espionage?

How do intelligence services listen?​

• National secret services in almost all countries cooperate with mobile operators, which provide them with access to any subscriber by court order and transmit data for at least the last 3 months.
• If the phone is being tapped by a secret service, you probably won't even notice it. Stories about interference during a conversation, fast battery discharge, battery heating and sudden phone reboots are just an excuse to send it for repair.
• People are not so informative in communicating on the phone, so for wiretapping it is much more convenient to use special devices ("bugs") in the premises, which can be detected using a radio wave detector.

How to protect yourself from scammers and spies?​

• Use instant messengers, access to which is closed to everyone, for example Telegram, Chare, Wickr or Signal.
• Determine what information is safe to make publicly available. Should everyone know your phone number, have access to information about your family, loved ones and lifestyle. Be careful when posting pictures of children.
• Do not install unfamiliar software on your phone, control existing applications, use multi-level identification whenever possible, do not follow unsafe links and do not connect to suspicious cables for "free" charging.
• Only a mobile operator can offer a service to track the location of a subscriber: a member of your family, an acquaintance or a company employee. Exclusively with the consent of the subscriber (if he has reached the age of majority). Sites and applications that offer to determine the location of any subscriber are scammers. Be careful!