// Resource Guide
If your ex seems to know where you've been, who you've seen, or what you've said — your instinct is worth taking seriously. Technology-facilitated abuse is now one of the most common tools of coercive control. This guide covers what to check and how to reduce your risk right now, before a professional sweep.
// 01 — Warning Signs
You do not need to find a device to know something is wrong. Abusers who use surveillance technology often reveal themselves through their behaviour — knowing things they shouldn't, arriving where you are, referencing private conversations. Trust that instinct.
Showing up where you are, referencing where you've been, or knowing your plans before you've shared them — this is one of the clearest signs of active GPS tracking, whether via a physical device on your car or location sharing still active on a shared account.
Location TrackingIf they reference things said in your home, over the phone, or in messages they were not party to — an audio recording device, compromised phone, or active microphone access on a smart device may be involved.
Audio SurveillanceChildren's iPads and iPhones are one of the most commonly overlooked tracking vectors. If your child's device is still linked to a shared iCloud or Google account your ex has access to, their location — and by extension yours — is visible to them in real time. See the iCloud section below.
Children's DevicesStalkerware — software installed on your phone that silently reports your location, messages, and calls — runs continuously in the background and causes noticeable battery drain. This alone is not conclusive, but combined with other signs it is significant.
Phone CompromiseComments about what you are wearing, who is in your home, or what is on your desk — without having been there — can indicate a concealed camera. These are most commonly placed inside smoke detectors, power adaptors, or everyday objects.
Visual Surveillance// 02 — Children's Devices
This is one of the most common and least suspected tracking vectors in domestic violence situations. A child's device set up under a shared Apple ID or Family Sharing account gives your ex real-time access to that child's location — and since the child is with you, your location too.
On your child's iPhone or iPad, go to Settings → [child's name] at the top → Find My. Check whether "Share My Location" is enabled and who it is being shared with. Also check Settings → Family Sharing to see if your ex is still listed as an organiser or member of a Family Sharing group. If they are, they have access to that device's location.
The same applies to Google accounts on Android tablets. If a child's device was set up using a Google account your ex controls or has access to, Google Family Link may be giving them continuous location data.
Do not simply delete the account or turn off sharing without speaking to a support worker or solicitor first — in some circumstances, abruptly cutting location access can escalate risk or have implications for family court proceedings.
// 03 — Your Phone
Before assuming your phone has been compromised with stalkerware, check the simpler and more common culprits first — apps and settings that share your location legitimately, that you set up together and never turned off.
Settings → [your name] → Find My → Share My Location. Check who you are sharing with. Remove anyone you do not trust.
Open Google Maps → tap your profile photo → Location Sharing. Any active sharing sessions are listed here. Tap to stop.
Open Snapchat → tap your Bitmoji → Snap Map settings. Check if location is set to "Ghost Mode" or if specific people can see you.
If you used any shared location app during the relationship, check whether you are still a member of a shared circle. Leave any group that includes your ex.
If you believe stalkerware may be installed on your device, do not attempt to find or remove it yourself — this can alert the person who installed it. The safest option is to get a new SIM and a new device, and contact us before doing anything else on the existing phone.
// 04 — Your Vehicle
Physical GPS trackers are small, widely available and purpose built to avoid detection. They can be placed on a vehicle in seconds and run for weeks on battery power. They do not require access to your phone, your accounts, or your home — just a few seconds near your car.
Common placement locations include the undercarriage, inside wheel arches, behind bumpers, and under seats. We do not recommend you physically inspect your own vehicle — an untrained search is unlikely to find a well-placed device, and disturbing it may alert your abuser.
What you can do right now is download AirGuard (free, iOS and Android), which passively scans for AirTags and other Bluetooth tracker types that may be moving with you. It will alert you if an unknown tracker has been detected across multiple locations over time.
AirGuard and similar apps scan using your phone — but if your phone is compromised, that creates a problem. BlackGrid Drift is a dedicated hardware device, worn or carried, that performs passive BLE tracker detection independently of your phone entirely.
It builds a continuous picture of Bluetooth signals moving with you across locations. When the same unknown device appears with you repeatedly — at home, at work, at the shops — it pushes a silent alert to your phone via Bluetooth. No cloud. No account. No trace.
BlackGrid Drift is the world's first dedicated passive tracker detection device built specifically for domestic violence victims. No phone app runs the scan. No compromised device can interfere with the detection layer.
// 05 — Know the Limits
The steps above cover the most accessible risks. But there is a significant category of surveillance technology that no app, no settings menu, and no visual inspection will find:
A tracker drawing power directly from your vehicle's wiring emits no Bluetooth signal and will not appear on any consumer app. Detection requires professional RF scanning equipment.
A recording device that is powered off or in standby emits nothing. Non-Linear Junction Detection (NLJD) finds these by identifying semiconductor components regardless of power state.
Commercially available stalkerware is designed to be invisible to the user. It will not appear in your app list. Finding it requires forensic analysis of the device — not a manual check.
These steps reduce your exposure and give you more information. They do not replace a professional sweep. If your instinct tells you something is wrong, it probably is — and what you cannot see is exactly what Safe Sweep is trained to find.
You do not need to be certain. You do not need to have found anything. Suspicion is enough — contact us and we will take it from there, completely confidentially.
If the signs match what you are seeing, a sweep will tell you for certain. Confidential from the first message.