July 11, 2025
Most of us carry our phones everywhere, trusting them with everything from passwords to private business conversations. For executive directors, DONs and caregivers in an assisted-living or memory-care setting, that phone also holds resident charts, family contact lists and eMAR alerts. But here's the unsettling truth: phone tracking is far more common - and easier - than most people realize.
Whether it's a jealous partner, a disgruntled employee or a cybercriminal targeting your Colorado Springs senior-living community, anyone with the right tools can monitor your location, read your messages or even access sensitive business data without you ever knowing. And for business owners, and community operators, that puts more than just your privacy at risk. It puts residents' PHI, state-survey scores and occupancy rates in danger.
How Phone Tracking
Works:
There are several ways someone might track your phone:
●
Spyware Apps:
These can be secretly installed to monitor calls, texts and app usage. Some can
even activate your microphone or camera without your knowledge.
●
Phishing Links: Clicking a malicious
link in an e-mail or SMS can silently download tracking software onto your
phone.
●
Location Sharing: Apps with excessive
permissions or with social platforms you forgot were still logged in might be
sharing your location in the background.
●
Stalkerware:
This specific type of spyware is designed to hide in plain sight, often
disguised as harmless apps or settings tools.
These methods don't require advanced
hacking skills - many are sold commercially under the guise of "monitoring
software."
Why This A Big Deal For
If you run a community, your phone likely contains
more than just personal messages. Think: e-mails with resident medical data,
saved passwords, banking access and staffing rosters. A compromised
phone can be an open door to your entire facility.
The scarier part is the likelihood that you won't
realize you're being tracked until it's too late - after a resident trust
account is drained, a competitive move-in deal is leaked or family
confidence is shaken.
Consider this: a single data breach costs U.S. small
businesses an average of $120,000 (Verizon Data Breach IR). For a 70-bed
assisted-living community, that out-of-pocket hit could wipe out months of NOI
and derail expansion plans.
Signs Someone Might Be Tracking Your
Phone
Most spyware tools are designed to
operate quietly, but there are still signs to watch for:
●
Battery drain that doesn't match your
usage
●
Increased data usage or strange spikes
●
The phone feels hot when idle
●
Unexplained apps or icons
●
Background noise during calls
●
Frequent crashes or unresponsive screens
These symptoms don't guarantee your
phone is compromised, but when paired alongside other unusual behavior, they're
worth investigating.
How To Stop
Phone Tracking
If you suspect someone is tracking your
phone, here's what to do:
1. Run A Security Scan:
Use a reputable mobile security app to detect and remove spyware or malware.
These tools can also monitor your device in real time and alert you to new
threats.
2. Check App Permissions:
Go through your app list and review permissions. Disable unnecessary access to
location, microphone and camera - especially for apps you rarely use.
3. Update Your Phone: Security
updates often include patches for vulnerabilities that spyware might exploit.
Make sure your phone is running the latest OS.
4. Perform A Factory Reset:
If spyware is confirmed and can't be removed easily, a factory reset is the
most thorough option. Just make sure to back up critical data and change all
important passwords after the reset.
5. Set Up Security Controls: Use biometric logins
(like Face ID or fingerprint) and enable multifactor authentication on critical
business apps and accounts.
Don't Leave Your Phone - And Business - Exposed
Because you're a business owner, your
phone is more than a personal device. It's a mobile command center, customer
file cabinet and sometimes a virtual vault. That's why keeping it secure should
be nonnegotiable.
Cybercriminals are opportunists, and a
compromised mobile device gives them an easy way in - no firewall needed.
If you're serious about protecting your
data, your team and your clients, start with a FREE No-Drama Data Checkup.
We'll help identify hidden vulnerabilities in your systems and devices and
recommend a path forward.
Click here or give us a call at 719-510-5869 to schedule your FREE Assessment today.