Consumer spyware apps that covertly and continuously monitor private messages, photos, calls, and real-time location are a major problem for Android users.
This guide will help you identify and remove common surveillance apps from your Android smartphone, including TheTruthSpy, KidsGuard, and other apps.
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Consumer spyware apps are often sold under the guise of child monitoring or family tracking software, but their ability to track and monitor partners or spouses without their consent makes them known as “stalkerware” or “stalkerware.” Also called “sport wear”. These spyware apps are downloaded from outside the Google Play app store, implanted on a person's phone without their permission, and often disappear from the home screen to avoid detection.
Stalkerware apps are typically built-in Android features that are used by companies to remotely manage employees' work phones or use Android's accessibility mode to snoop on someone's device. It relies on exploitation.
Even if you are not actively using your phone, your phone may behave strangely, run warmer than usual, run slower, or use a large amount of network data.
Checking if your Android device has been compromised is quick and easy.
Before you start
It's important to have a safety plan in place and reliable support if needed. Please note that removing spyware from your phone may alert the person who implanted it, creating a potentially dangerous situation. The Coalition Against Stalkerware provides advice and guidance to victims and survivors of stalkerware.
Please note that this guide only helps you identify and remove spyware apps and does not remove data that has already been collected and uploaded to our servers. Also, menu options may vary slightly on some versions of Android. As with all advice standards, the following steps are taken at your own risk.
Check your Google Play Protect settings
Make sure Google Play Protect, a security feature on your Android phone, is enabled. Image credit: TechCrunch
Google Play Protect screens apps downloaded from Google's app store and external sources for signs of potential malicious activity and provides the best protection available to protect against malicious Android apps. One. When Play Protect is turned off, these protections no longer work. It's important to make sure Play Protect is turned on to ensure it's working and scanning for malicious apps.
You can check whether Play Protect is enabled in your Play Store app settings. You can also scan for harmful apps if a scan has not already been done.
Check if accessibility services have been tampered with
Stalkerware relies on deep access to the device to access data and is known to exploit Android's accessibility mode. By design, this mode requires extensive access to the operating system and data in order for screen readers and other accessibility features to work.
Android users who don't use accessibility apps or features should not see the app in their Android settings.
If a downloaded service isn't recognized by your accessibility options, we recommend turning off the service in settings and deleting the app. Some stalkerware apps disguise themselves as normal apps, often with innocuous-sounding names like “accessibility,” “device health,” or “system services.”
Android spyware often exploits built-in accessibility features. Image credit: TechCrunch
Check access to notifications
Similar to accessibility features, Android also allows third-party apps to access and read your incoming notifications. For example, you can read alerts on your smart speaker or display notifications on your car's dashboard. Granting notification access to a stalkerware app allows it to continuously monitor notifications, including messages and other alerts.
[特別なアプリ アクセス]You can see which apps can access your notifications by checking your Android notification access settings. Some apps may look familiar, such as Android Auto. You can turn off notification access for apps you don't recognize.
Spyware uses notification access to read user messages and other alerts. Image credit: TechCrunch
Check if device management app is installed
Other features commonly exploited by stalkerware include Android device management options. It has similar but broader access to Android device and user data.
Device management options are typically used by businesses to remotely manage employee phones, such as wiping the phone to prevent data loss if the device is stolen. However, these features also allow stalkerware apps to snoop on your Android display and device data.
Unrecognized items in your device management app's settings are a common sign that your phone has been compromised. Image credit: TechCrunch
Device management app settings[セキュリティ]of[設定]It is located in
Most people don't have a device management app on their phone, so you'll see unfamiliar apps with similarly confusing and ambiguous names like “System Services,” “Device Status,” and “Device Management.” Please be careful if ”
Check which apps to uninstall
You may not see the home screen icon for these stalkerware apps, but they will appear in your Android device's app list.
You can view all installed apps in Android settings. Look for apps or icons you don't recognize. These apps may also appear with extensive access to your calendar, call logs, camera, contacts, and location data.
Spyware apps are designed to blend in with common names and icons. Image credit: TechCrunch
Force-stopping and uninstalling a stalkerware app may alert the person who planted the stalkerware that the app is no longer working.
Protect your device
If stalkerware has been placed on your phone, it is most likely that your phone is unlocked or unprotected, or that your screen lock has been guessed or learned. A stronger lock screen password can help protect your phone from intruders. You should also use two-factor authentication whenever possible to protect your email and other online accounts.
If you or someone you know needs help, the National Domestic Violence Hotline (1-800-799-7233) provides free, confidential support 24/7 to victims of domestic violence and violence. We provide. If you are in an emergency, please call 911. If you think your phone has been compromised by spyware, the Coalition Against Stalkerware has resources.
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