How do I tell whether someone else has access to my phone?
The five routes someone actually gets into a phone, how to check each of them, and why the answer is usually a shared account rather than hidden software.
- Difficulty
- intermediate
- Time
- 40 min
- Read
- 4 min
- Safety
- warning
Short answer
Check the boring routes first, because they are the usual answer: a shared Apple or Google account, family sharing, a device signed in to your accounts, someone who knows your passcode, and location sharing you enabled and forgot. Then check installed apps, device management profiles and accessibility permissions. Hidden monitoring software is real but less common than shared access.
The question is usually asked as "is there spyware on my phone", and the honest answer is that the commonest routes require no software at all. Someone who knows your passcode, or whose device is signed into your account, sees a great deal without installing anything. Work through the routes in order of likelihood.
Safety
Step by step
- Check who is signed into your account.In your Apple or Google account settings, look at the list of devices signed in. Remove anything you do not recognise or no longer own. This is the single most common route and it is invisible from the phone's home screen.
- Check family sharing and shared subscriptions.Family groups can share location, purchase history and screen time reporting. Look at who is in the group and what is shared, and leave the group if it is not what you want.
- Check location sharing separately.Both platforms let you share your location indefinitely with named people, and it is easy to forget. Check the sharing list in the maps and find-my apps, and check any messaging app's live location feature.
- Check the passcode and biometrics.Look at whether a second fingerprint or face is registered that is not yours. Change the passcode if anyone else has ever known it, and choose a longer numeric code rather than four digits.
- Look for device management or configuration profiles.On iPhone, look in Settings for VPN and device management; on Android, check device admin apps. A profile you did not install gives extensive control and is a serious finding.
- Review accessibility and notification access on Android.Monitoring apps commonly request accessibility permissions, which let them read the screen, and notification access, which lets them read messages. Review both lists and remove anything unfamiliar.
- Look for apps you did not install.Check the full app list, including apps with innocuous names and system-looking icons. On Android, check whether installation from unknown sources has been enabled.
- Check email forwarding and account recovery details.Access is often maintained through the email account rather than the phone. Check forwarding rules, filters, recovery addresses and recovery phone numbers.
- Update the phone, then consider a reset.An operating system update removes many monitoring tools. A full factory reset with a fresh account, rather than restoring the old backup, removes almost all of them — but restoring a backup can restore the problem.
- Get specialist help if this is about a person, not a device.Refuge runs a specialist technology-facilitated abuse service, and the National Domestic Abuse Helpline is on 0808 2000 247 in England, free and open at any hour; Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland each run their own line. They advise on the order to do things in so that removing access does not increase risk.
If it doesn't work
Battery draining and the phone running warm for no reason
Cause: Could be monitoring software, and much more often a failing battery or a misbehaving app — Fix: Check battery usage by app first. Investigate anything unfamiliar with high background use before concluding anything.
Someone knows things they should not
Cause: Most often a shared account or a known passcode rather than software — Fix: Work through the account, family sharing, location sharing and passcode checks before looking for hidden apps.
Settings change by themselves
Cause: A device management profile or an app with accessibility permissions — Fix: Check for configuration or device admin profiles, and review accessibility permissions. Both are strong findings.
You are signed out of accounts unexpectedly
Cause: Someone else signing in and evicting your session — Fix: Change the password from a different device, sign out all sessions, and set up a second factor that is not SMS.
Questions people ask
Can I detect monitoring software with an app?
Some security apps detect known commercial monitoring tools, particularly on Android. They are worth running, but a clean result is not proof, and the account and passcode checks matter more.
Will a factory reset definitely fix it?
It removes almost all software-based monitoring, but only if you set the phone up fresh rather than restoring the old backup, and only if you also change the account passwords the person may know.
Is it illegal for someone to monitor my phone?
Installing monitoring software on someone else's device without consent can be a criminal offence under computer misuse and, in a relationship context, may amount to controlling or coercive behaviour or stalking. Keep evidence and speak to the police or a specialist service.