Device tracking applications have long been in the works, with the earliest iterations preceding smartphones. This fact is often a surprise to most people who now frequently use these applications and consider them synonymous with smart devices. But device tracking app have found a lot of utility in today’s digital world and their prominence shouldn’t come as a surprise.
Device tracking apps have many names in the business. They’re often called monitoring apps or phone tracking software. But their overarching functions and utility remain the same across the board.
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What is a Device Tracking App Anyway?
Device tracking apps behave like reporters and data collectors on a device. They can be installed on phones, laptops, and tablets (among other smart devices), but their primary use case is for tapping into the contents and activity on a smartphone. These applications are typically hidden on the device they’re installed on, which masks their behavior and operation from curious users.
There are generally two categories into which device tracking apps generally fall: the ethical trackers and the non-ethical trackers. It doesn’t mean that there are two versions of device tracking apps available to consumers for when they do or don’t feel particularly nefarious, but that the same instance of the app can have multiple use-cases. Some are more ethically ambiguous than others.
How are Device Tracking Apps Used?
The usability of device tracking apps is seen through the lens of three categories of users: parents, employers, and schools. Parents are the primary demographic of these apps and for good reason. Device tracking apps are seen as the most prominent deterrent in parenting for avoiding unnecessary, dangerous, and abusive situations for children.
Parents routinely use these applications to try and get a sense of what their children are up to in the digital world. As tracking apps tap into social media and instant messenger activity, it can be very easy for parents to highlight potentially problematic situations for their kids. The most widespread use of these apps is in the curtailing of cyberbullying today. Cyberbullying has become a major issue in the US, with over 37% of children reported being victims of bullies. Couple this with the rise of sex crimes against children, and you have parents with a desperate outlook on mitigating similar situations at all costs.
Similarly, employers have good reason to pursue device tracking apps. With the global statistics on cyberattacks looking bleak as ever, these apps are added to the corporate arsenal to help mitigate any potential instances of employee negligence or malice that could lead to a cyberattack. Remote working environments have also called upon stricter measures on employees remaining productive and not dispersing their time on personal errands. A clamp down on corporate theft is also one of the most substantial factors for the use of device monitoring applications.
Finally, deploying a cell phone tracker app for Android and iOS is much less needed in schools, yet educational institutes continue to adopt this technology. The reason for this is the increase in distance learning, and how the pandemic aided remote learning globally. Devices issued by schools can be regulated with the help of such apps, and along with tracking student productivity and engagement, cyber security can also be ensured in this sector.
Are Device Monitoring Apps Right For You?
Figuring out whether you could benefit from device monitoring applications is a decision best made by consumers themselves. It is due to specific use-cases where anyone would want to deploy these apps that are different for people. While the above-mentioned justifications for monitoring apps are legitimate, they come at a grave cost of subverting personal privacy. This realization alone can be difficult for most people to stomach.
Think of the optics before you divulge into the world of monitoring apps. Most users finely tread the lines between being concerned individuals and eavesdroppers. And these can interchange depending on the deployment of these apps. An employer with an official policy around tracking on company-issued devices would still be looked at in an agreeable light than a parent to their children who routinely obsesses over their child’s personal affairs. Even if your major concern that initiated this response was declining office productivity or security risks. The privacy tax is real and everyone needs to understand the ramifications it can bring.
Then there’s the monetary tax that needs to be paid. Device tracking apps are seldom free of cost while others charge a pretty penny for their services. Finding a reputable free service is downright impossible in today’s subscription-only finance model, and opting for an application that charges in the multiple hundreds of dollars a month isn’t suited to everyone. This is where the XNSPY cell phone tracker app for Android and iOS comes in as a cheaper alternative to most consumers.
What to Expect from XNSPY and Others?
XNSPY and other monitoring apps work almost the same way. You’d be hard-pressed to find an app that has a feature unique to it. Once it is out in the software world, competitors are quick to integrate it into their kits as well. XNSPY experienced this firsthand. XNSPY introduced features such as remote video capturing or surround recording. Surround recording allowed devices to remotely turn on the device’s microphones and allowed users to listen to everything in the proximity of the device. This feature, in particular soon became popular and other offerings began integrating this feature.
You will find applications and software in the early stages of development that may not rival XNSPY’s feature list or compatibility offerings, however. Speaking of features, XNSPY can remotely access all data on a particular device and displays it to the user in a dashboard. This includes social media activity, instant messenger and text message chats, call logs, live location information, and even allows call recording. The XNSPY app can do it all. But there are limitations.
The most unexpected take from curious first-timers is how they assumed XNSPY to be a screen-mirroring software. The device monitoring app is far from it. Users can view information coming into and going out of the device with XNSPY, but cannot manipulate the data. You can’t, for instance, log into the WhatsApp account registered on your child’s phone with XNSPY and expect to send chats or delete messages. All data is strictly view-only. The reins of the device still lie with the entrusted party of said device.
Whether you need a cell phone tracker app for Android and iOS depends on your unique use case and deployment. Perhaps even more important are the reasons to consider why you’d want to subscribe to a tracking app. Understanding their flaws, shortcomings, and possible social and legal repercussions are important considerations to make before making a purchase decision. The utility of tracking apps is undeniable and in many cases, even necessary. We’d suggest only pulling the trigger once you’re completely sure this is the remedy to your problem.
