iPhone Tips

From Jim H

Tech blogger Kim Komando posted the following...Jim

TL;DR (THE SHORT VERSION)

  • Your iPhone’s Significant Locations secretly logs every place you visit, with dates, times and duration.

  • Android’s Google Maps Timeline does the same thing.

  • Here’s exactly how to find them, see what they know and shut them off.

📖 Read time: 2 minutes

OK, pick up your iPhone right now. Go to Settings > Privacy & Security > Location Services > System Services > Significant Locations & Routes. Enter your passcode.

See that number under Summary? Prepare to be shocked.

That’s how many locations your phone has secretly logged. Every place you go. When you arrived. How long you stayed. Your doctor’s office. Your friend’s apartment. The hotel in Vegas. That place you told nobody about.

It’s turned on by default. Apple never asked. And it’s been running since the day you set up your phone. Nice, right?

📍 Your phone’s diary you never wrote

Apple calls it Significant Locations. It tracks places you visit frequently to “improve Maps, Calendar and Photos.” Sounds harmless. But think about what that data reveals: your daily routine, where your kids go to school, your therapist’s office, how often you visit someone and for how long.

Apple says this data is encrypted and stays on your device. On your device means anyone who knows your passcode can see it. A jealous partner or a nosy coworker. Law enforcement in some states doesn’t need a warrant to legally compel you to unlock it with Face ID. Then it’s all right there.

🪝 Android fans, you’re not off the hook

Google Maps has a feature called Timeline that does the same thing, except even more detailed. Routes, time stamps, how you got there. Google changed the default to off in 2024, but if you’ve had an Android for years, you probably turned it on and forgot. Your history could go back years and years.

Even if you turned off Timeline, Google may still save location data through Web & App Activity. Searching for a restaurant? Location saved. Getting directions? Saved.

🔒 Check it and shut it down

  • iPhone: Go to Settings > Privacy & Security > Location Services > System Services > Significant Locations & Routes. Tap Clear History, then toggle Significant Locations & Routes OFF.

  • Android: Open Google Maps > tap your profile picture > Your timeline > tap the three dots > Location & privacy settings. Select Delete all Timeline data, then toggle Timeline OFF. Next, go to myactivity.google.com and turn off Web & App Activity or set it to auto-delete every three months.

While you’re at it, revoke location access for any app that doesn’t absolutely need it. That weather app? Approximate is fine. Your flashlight app? It needs your location like a fish needs a bicycle.

Your phone knows more about where you’ve been than your best friend, your spouse or your mother. And it’s sitting there waiting for someone to look.

You could say your phone really knows all your secrets. Location, location, location. 

🗣️ TEXT THIS STAT: Your iPhone has been secretly logging every place you go since the day you turned it on. It’s called Significant Locations, it’s buried six menus deep, and it’s turned on by default. Go check yours right now. GetKim.com

Turn Your Old Android or iPhone into a Free Security Camera

From Jim H

Got an Old Android or iPhone Sitting in a Drawer? Turn It Into a Free Security Camera in Just 3 Steps: https://flip.it/WB0Wcj

More iPhone Tips from Jim H

These tips might be of interest...Jim

https://readbetterbuck.org/iphone-features-v3

If you are getting rid of your Iphone, tech blogger Kim Kopmando has a tip for your consideration...Jim

 

Getting Rid of Your iPhone? Read this First

⚡ TL;DR (Key Takeaways)

  • A factory reset doesn’t erase your data. It erases the map TO your data. Everything else is still on the chip. 

  • 56% of used routers and 35% of secondhand phones still had recoverable personal data after being “wiped.” 

  • The real fix takes two minutes: Encrypt first, double wipe, then cut the cloud connection from your account settings.

📖 Read time: 2 minutes

I used to tell people a factory reset was enough. Handing your old phone to your kid or passing a router to your sister? A reset is fine. You trust those people, and the risk is basically zero.

But selling it online? Donating it to a stranger? Trading it in at a carrier store? That’s a different story. 

Today’s data recovery tools make a basic factory reset about as protective as a screen door on a submarine.

🛠️ How it works

A factory reset doesn’t delete your data. It deletes the table of contents. Everything is still there. Your Wi-Fi passwords. Your saved logins. Your photos. All of it, invisible to you but completely readable with a $20 tool and a YouTube tutorial.

A security company bought 18 used routers off the secondhand market. Over 56% still had Wi-Fi credentials, VPN logins and encryption keys sitting there. A study of secondhand phones? 35% had recoverable texts, emails and passwords after a factory reset. At DEF CON (the world’s biggest hacking conference), a researcher found that 50% of smart home devices bought secondhand hadn’t even been reset. People unplugged them and dropped them at Goodwill. 

The average American home has 21 connected devices. That’s 21 little filing cabinets full of your life heading to a shelf somewhere.

🔑 Do this

Here’s the real checklist.

1. Encrypt first, then reset. This is the move that makes everything else pointless to recover.

  • iPhone: Your data is encrypted by default, but you need to do this right. Sign out of iCloud first: Settings > [Your Name] > Sign Out. Then go to Settings > General > Transfer or Reset iPhone > Erase All Content and Settings. This destroys the encryption key. Anything left on the chip? Scrambled gibberish.

  • Android: Go to Settings > Security and privacy > More security settings > Enhanced data protection > then toggle on Encrypt backup data (if it’s not already encrypted). Then Settings > System > Reset > Factory Data Reset. The order matters. Encrypt first, then reset. If you reset without encrypting, your data is still sitting there in plain text.

2. The double wipe. Reset it using the steps above. Then set it up again with a fake name, junk email and a guest Wi-Fi network. Fill it with garbage. Then reset it again using the same steps. This forces the chip to overwrite your real data. Free. Easy. Wildly effective.

3. Cut the cloud connection. Go into your Apple, Google, Amazon or any other account’s security settings, find the list of connected devices and remove the one you’re getting rid of. Do this for every account tied to that device. If you skip this step, your old gadget still has a backstage pass to your stuff.

4. For routers and cameras you can’t properly wipe? Don’t donate them. A drill bit through the circuit board takes three seconds and is the only reset that’s 100% guaranteed. Then recycle the remains. 

📊 Post this stat: 56% of used routers sold online contain the Wi-Fi passwords, VPN logins and encryption keys of their previous owners. A “factory reset” doesn’t erase your data. It erases the map to your data. Everything else is still on the chip. GetKim.com

Watch Out for Corona and DarkSword iPhone Hacks

Here is an article discussing a potential hack on the iPhone....Jim

A major hacking tool has leaked online, putting millions of iPhones at risk. Here’s what you need to know.: Here’s what we know, and what you need to know, about Coruna and DarkSword, two advanced iPhone hacking tools discovered by security researchers. DarkSword has now leaked online. Read More

iPhone Hacks

from Jim H

Here is yet another article discussing possible hacks on iPhones. As my iPhone is quite old it can't get current protection updates, so, one of these days, I'll get hacked....Jim

Apple made strides with iOS 26 security, but leaked hacking tools still leave millions exposed to spyware attacks: Leaked hacking tools threaten the security of millions of older iPhones. Cybersecurity experts weigh in. Read More