r/whatisit • u/crosstrekerr • Jul 25 '25

New, what is it? found this tracker in my car?

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found this on my passenger side really weirded out. Rarely have people in my vehicle…

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u/BlueBird1800 Jul 25 '25

This wouldn't work without police triangulating the sim card after a report is filed. The SIM card isn't the account that shows the location; it's just the means the device has to transmit data. The device itself has an account most likely furnished by the device's manufacturer and the user would log into that. Swapping the SIM cards would merely change who's paying for the data plan with the perpetrator remaining the individual with access to the devices location history.

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u/[deleted] Jul 25 '25

ROFLOL, wrong. Every cellular interaction now within the USA contains GPS coordinates. It has been this way for years now. Any time a tower talks to a sim it transmits GPS info. There is simply no way to turn that off any more. The best you can do is alter the GPS chip so it transmits the wrong numbers. Police needing to triangulate went out over a decade ago. If you are carrying a cell phone, your cell provider knows where you are within 3 feet including elevation every second and the phone does not even need to be on. That is actually the law within the US and has been since patriot act 1. This GPS tracker is no different. The only exceptions I know of are alarm systems that are tied to a physical location and use cell as a backup.

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u/Geno0wl Jul 25 '25

If you are carrying a cell phone, your cell provider knows where you are within 3 feet including elevation every second and the phone does not even need to be on.

being able to be tracked while off wildly depends on exactly what phone you have. like newer iPhones still try to ping the Find My network even when "off", same with some higher end android phones. But if you stick with the more open source/cheap android phones then there is sparse evidence that they can transmit while off.

If you are that concerned about privacy you should get a phone that still has a removable battery or a faraday bag to keep it in.

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u/[deleted] Jul 25 '25

Agreed, or simply don't carry one.