How Do I Know If My Cell Phone Has Been Bugged

How do you find out if your cell phone is tapped? Well, someone who is wondering why the battery life on that newly purchased cell phone is shorter than expected or suspecting that weird sound the phone makes has something to do with privacy meaning their cell phone being tapped, they have hit the nail on the head!
Unless that person is involved in a crime, breach of trust, unpleasant activities or feeling some discomfort, there is nothing to worry about but to stay cool and get going.
Of course, no one really wants their cell phone to be tapped so here is some more information on how you can tell if your cell phone is tapped and what exactly you can do about it.

What to Look for When Suspicious

Although it is illegal to tap someone’s cell phone without their consent, the advent of high-tech has shown those culprits who are looking into intruding personal space of an unsuspecting victim in order to steal that critical information or call records, various sophisticated ways to do it without leaving a trace. Following is a list of signs to look for, that might indicate that the cell phone security has been compromised:

• The cell phone battery feels warmer than usual room temperature when not in use
• The cell phone goes on or off without operating it, unless the battery is too low
• Static noise heard with regular intervals, clicking or other background sounds
• The cell phone needs frequent charging which is unusual when the device is new
• The switch off time long enough to make someone frustrated is another sign, unless the phone is experiencing hardware glitches
• Screen distortion
• Strange numbers on the display or monthly statement

Victims of Cell Phone Tapping

The chances are high that a well-mannered person’s cell phone is clean and free from malicious stuffs but one need to be highly vigilant when it comes to protecting privacy as there are many reasons to believe why it was invaded in the first place. Some of the potential suspects to make note of are:

• Spouse of dubious nature
• A nosy boss
• A random prankster
• Marketing spammers
• Investigating departments

It is most likely that the person whose cell phone gets tapped is either unaware of any signs of phone tapping or just leading a busy life.

Techniques to Tap a Cell Phone

A broad knowledge in the abuse of hi-tech gadgets is as important to one as the fancy usage of them. Taking that into mind, though it is not recommended, calls and other details from a cell phone can be tapped using various techniques as explained below:

1. The Multi-track system, an external device manufactured and distributed by some surveillance product companies or Spy data extractor similar to USB drive can be used to read the data from the Cell Phone into the computer which then reveals all the messages and numbers that has been deleted from the phone and in some cases, recorded conversations.
2. Another option is to purchase a call recorder card that can be filled in with minutes during purchase and the phone number to be tapped is entered according to the instructions given, while all the calls that are received by the phone being tapped are forwarded to a switch provided by the company which are retrieved later.
3. Certain softwares like FlexiSpy and RecordiaPro installed into the cell phone, makes the conversation available in real time or records it for later usage by accessing the relevant system. Other software that are coupled with GPS features make it possible for someone to track down the exact location of the device at a fingertip.
4. Online surveillance providers let the user track the phone by entering the number in their website thus pin-pointing the geographic position of the device.

How to Protect a Cell Phone from Being Tapped

Just like every problem has a solution and every virus has an anti-virus, a tapped cell phone has an easy way out of all the mess if one knows how to dot all the i’s and cross all the t’s. Here are a few:

• Reporting the intrusion to anti-crime squads or private investigating agencies will save a lot of time and energy spent in figuring out the possibility.
• Taking a chance by asking the suspect directly is another way to get through it.
• Service providers normally are equipped with all the required technology to find out the breach and provide them to customers upon request. The providers can then completely wipe out the bugs and restore the device manufacturer settings.
• Having a password enabled lock system or taking the battery out when not in use is recommended too.
• Phones and devices that are less sophisticated and less experimented with are a better option if one is really concerned about the security issues because the software for such devices are either outdated or hard to find making it hard for the intruder to break through it precisely.
• Leaving the cell phone around to bask in the sun or warm-up at the gym or listen to the rest of the speech will make it easier for the culprit to get a hand on it. Hence it is always good to be on the safe side than to repent later.

Last but not least, only authorized Government agents are allowed to tap a cell phone. For the rest of the population doing such a thing is highly illegal which in fact could land them in jail.
Many cell phone tapping crimes happening each and every day some of which go unnoticed and untraced, adversely affect the life of both personal users and large scale businesses. While most monetary losses can be compensated with proper backup or insurance, the ones that are irreplaceable, like trust, are lost forever.