It only takes a few minutes for someone to install spy cell phone software on your cell phone. Once they do, they’ll be able to listen to your live conversations, read your text messages, view photos on your phone, find out who called you and the calls you’ve placed, and also track your every move via GPS.
This is not science fiction, it’s real and can happen to anyone who is not careful. Most mobile spyware is almost impossible to detect, but there are a few signs that can tip you off if you happen to have it on your phone.
Here are five of the most common signs that you might have cellphone spyware installed on your phone.
1) Have you kept your phone with you at all times? There is absolutely no way to install commercial cell phone spyware without physical access to your phone. If you are 100% sure nobody has used your mobile, then the odds of your phone having spyware on it is slim. Keep in mind that it only takes a few minutes for someone to quickly install cell spyware, so even if you let someone borrow your phone to make a quick call, download the latest new ringtone, game, or wallpaper, then you could be at risk.
2) Unusually High Bill? Have you recently started to see an increase in your cellular bills? Or perhaps you’ve been shocked to suddenly see an unusually large bill? Spyphone software requires a data connection (such as GPRS) to transfer the data that has been secretly recorded. If you’e not the kind of person who enjoys surfing the net on their phone, or frequently downloads ring tones, and games, then sudden changes in your bill, specically due to increased data usage, is a good sign that your cellphone could be infected.
3) Battery Drain? Have you been grabbing your cellphone’s charger more than usual? Cell spy software runs continuously in the background, recording events such as incoming/outgoing text messages, call history, and GPS location. It then uploads the logs to a secure remote server so the person who installed the spyware can access the logs and view everything recorded. All of this takes a bit of juice to make happen, so if you suddenly see a drop in your battery life, then it could also be a sign you have cell phone spyware on your phone.
4) Shut Down Problems? If you try to shut down your cellphone and it doesn’t respond, then this could also be another indication that your mobile has spyware on it. Because these spy apps continuously runs in the background, they occasionally cause problems when a person attempts to shut the device down. Think of when you use Windows. I’m sure you can remember several instances where you tried to shut down your computer, but ran into problems because another program wouldn’t respond. The same thing periodically occurs on devices that have cell spyware software installed.
5) Check Your Icons! Have you recently started to see strange new icons on your phone? Or does the GPRS indicator icon suddenly appear for no reason? Remember, cell phone spyware requires a data connection, and when this happens, most cell phones will briefly show an icon that indicates a connection is occurring.
So what can you do if you think you have cell phone spyware on your phone? The only way to completely remove the spy phone software, is to reinstall the operating system. This can be done at the place of purchase. Just take it in and tell them that you think someone has installed spyware on your phone, and then they’ll proceed to reinstall the OS.
There also free programs online that claim to detect and remove cell phone spyware, but the only way to be 100% sure, is to get your phone wiped, and then get a fresh install of the OS. Once you are sure that your phone is spyware free, you can do simple things to ensure it stays that way. Make sure that you keep it close to you at all times, use a phone lock that requires a PIN number, and closely monitor your cell phone for any unusual behavior.
