Cell Phone Surveillance Software & Apps

Surveillance apps and spy apps are cell phone applications that monitor and track iOS and Android smartphones. Cell phone spy apps can be used by anyone to track: phone calls, websites, text messages, social media accounts, instant messaging apps, phone contact lists, and track the GPS location of the phone.

Our Most Popular Spy App Articles

Below are my most popular articles on spy apps. I cover apps for all major phones and even the best apps for specific needs.

My Spy App Reviews

There are dozens of spy apps on the market. Most of them offer similar features. The names listed below are the most common spy apps

Social Media Spying Software

Social media spying apps allow you to track activity on many of the most popular social media platforms. Here are a few of the most popular surveillance apps.

Mobile Phone Surveillance FAQ

Here are the answers to common questions people have about installing and using mobile spy apps.

How Do Phone Surveillance Apps Work?

Phone spy apps work by downloading data to a server for you to view. Some spy apps use phone backups. Other spying apps download directly from the phone itself.

Learn more in our article on How Phone Spyware Works

What Are the Most Common Types of Spy Apps?

The most common types of spy apps are Android and iOS based. They operate in the same basic way by downloading phone data to a server where it can be viewed in an online dashboard.

Is it Safe and Secure to use spying apps?

There have been several high profile cases of spyware companies having their data hacked. Since then, most of the industry has upgraded their security infrastructure. Here is an article addressing safety and security concerns of spy apps.

What is the cheapest spy app?

The cheapest spy app is uMobix. A 12 month subscription costs $11.66 per month for an iPhone or Android phone.

How can I monitor someone’s social media activity?

Spy apps are the best way to monitor someone’s social media activity. These apps allow you to see conversations, posts, reactions, and more.

What is the best free undetectable phone spy app?

iKeymonitor is one of the only free hidden spy apps out there. They offer a free Android spy app. Unfortunately the free version only offers a few features compared to the paid version.

In general free spy apps aren’t worth the time it takes to install them. Since they don’t make money there is little motivation to keep them updated.

Is Your Phone is Being Tapped, Monitored, or Tracked?

If you suspect your phone is being monitored there are a few things you can do. You can use a few simple codes to see if your phone is tapped. Then you can look for signs that someone installed spyware.

Checking for Spyware on an Android

Spyware often impacts the performance of your phone. If you have an Android there are a few things you can quickly check.

This article shows you how to check for spyware on an Android phone.

Checking for Spyware on an iPhone

iPhones are susceptible to spy apps too. If you think someone has hacked your iPhone or iOS device, check out this article on finding and removing spy apps from an iPhone.

You can also look for specific apps that are used for spying on an iOS device. The most common is Cydia. Here is an article detailing how to find Cydia hidden on your iPhone.

Is Rooting or Jailbreaking the Phone Required?

Some spyware apps require you to root the phone to get the most advanced spying features. None of my top 5 picks require rooting an Android or jailbreaking an iPhone.

FlexiSPY, the most powerful iPhone spy app, is the one exception.

Android spy apps require you to install the app directly onto the device. This requires you to have physical access to the phone. Most do not require rooting the Android device first.

Can Surveillance Apps Be Installed Remotely?

It is not possible to install spy apps remotely on Android mobile devices. You must have access to the target Android device.

Spyware can be installed on iPhones remotely because all data is accessed through the user’s iCloud account.

Are Spy Apps Against the Law?

Phone spy apps are legal in most countries if used for legitimate purposes. For more information you can check out this article on the legal requirements of phone spying apps.

Why Do People Use Surveillance Apps?

There are three main reasons to use a spyware apps.

1. a parental monitoring application to see the social media presence of their children
2. cell phone monitoring solution for employers to track employees
3. people in relationships who want to snoop on their partner’s cell phone and computer activity

The first two are legal. The third is only legal if you get the consent of the person being monitored.

How Do Surveillance Apps Track a Phone’s Physical Location?

Location tracking is one of the most important features of any spy software. To learn more about how this is done check out my article on how spying apps determine a phone’s location.

Can Spy Apps Work Without Internet Access?

Yes, spy apps can work without Internet access by using the SMS communications channel on a cell phone.

Surveillance software can also be programmed to wait until your cell signal or Wi-Fi connection is restored to send data.

Will Spy Apps Work If the Target Phone is Turned Off?

Some functions of spy apps will work even if the target phone is turned off. iOS-based surveillance software monitors your iCloud backups. Any data uploaded to this cloud account is accessible.

Android surveillance software cannot transmit data while the phone is off. It will transmit once the phone is turned back on.