Is It Illegal to Track Someone’s Location?

Lily Evans - February 22, 2025

Tracking someone’s location may seem like a great way to keep tabs on your loved ones and ensure they are safe, but there are serious legal complications with tracking someone’s location that it is important to be aware of. 

Consent is one of the key things to remember when it comes to location tracking, and location tracking without someone’s knowledge or location tracking that is done maliciously may lead to serious legal issues. 

Our article tells you more about the legalities behind tracking someone’s location and how to maintain your location privacy when necessary.

Reasons Why You May Need to Track Location

There are a few different reasons why you may need to track someone’s location. We give you an overview of the most common reasons to track a location below:

• You need to keep tabs on a friend or family member with potential medical issues
• You want to keep track of your child when they are away from home
• You are interested in seeing where your partner or spouse is going during the day
• You suspect that your partner is cheating or lying about their whereabouts
• You want to be sure that your loved ones arrive at their destinations safely

Keep in mind that tracking someone’s location in order to harass them or otherwise plan an illegal activity is a crime, and you may face charges of stalking or harassment if you continually attempt to track someone’s location, especially after you have been asked to stop.

How Do I Track Someone’s Location?

If you are interested in tracking someone’s location, you may be wondering what methods are available to legally and safely track someone’s location. It’s important to keep consent and state laws in mind when you consider using any of these methods to keep tabs on someone else’s location.

In general, common methods of tracking someone’s location include:

• Using a third-party app, such as Life360 or another reputable tracking app
• Using shared location services via Google Maps or another GPS app
• Using Apple’s FindMy software to log and track the location of all of the devices connected to your Apple account
• Using Apple AirTags or a similar product to keep track of someone’s location

You can choose the method that works best for you, but be aware that leaving tracking devices on someone’s person or in their car can result in serious legal issues if the person is not aware you are doing this.

What Are the Laws Around Tracking Someone’s Location?

Tracking someone’s location can be a complicated topic, as states have differing laws governing the use of tracking devices, and there can be complex situations when it comes to tracking the location of a minor you are related to.

That being said, it is illegal in virtually every state to place tracking devices on someone’s person, in their car, or around their other items to track their location without them knowing. While you could be able to use a tracking device to keep tabs on a family member, you must make it clear that this is what you are doing and give them the option to turn it down.

You should also note that installing spyware on someone’s phone or computer or using keylogging software in order to track someone’s search history and location data is illegal in most jurisdictions, and you can end up with a serious criminal conviction on your record if you do this.

Is It Illegal for Me to Track Someone’s Location Without Them Knowing?

It is illegal for you to track someone’s location if they do not know about it. With consent, you can track someone’s location legally, but you need to keep in mind that the person you are tracking could withdraw that consent at any time.

Additionally, you can track a minor child’s location, but you should still inform them that you are doing this and the reasoning behind your doing this. Take note that you cannot track your child’s location to keep track of your partner or co-parent, as this can be considered illegally tracking someone’s location in many states.

How Do I Legally Track Someone’s Location?

If you want to legally track someone’s location, you will need to speak to them, if they are an adult, and request that they share this information with you. Both Apple and Android phones make it easy to share location information between devices, and you can facilitate this by sharing location details using your maps apps or Apple’s FindMy services.

You can also utilize third-party apps to track someone’s location legally, and these apps can be very helpful if you need to track the location of your child easily or if you and your loved ones have several different devices you want to be connected. Make sure when choosing a location-sharing and tracking app that you select a reputable one and that you take the time to see which permissions and location data are stored by the app.

Should I Go to the Police If My Location is Being Tracked?

If your location is being tracked and you do not know who the culprit is, or if you know the culprit and they pose a threat to you, you should absolutely go to the police to report this information. 

Even if law enforcement officers can’t do anything immediately, creating a report and getting a paper trail of suspicious or harmful behavior can help you if you need to go to court at a later date to testify against someone who has been stalking you or otherwise illegally tracking your location.

Can I Track the Location of My Child?

It is possible to track the location of your child, even without their consent, as long as they are under 18 years old. This is because your child is a minor when they are under 18, and you do have the legal right to use tracking devices or reputable tracking apps to ensure you can access their location.

However, once your child is 18, they are not legally obligated to share this information with you, though you can ask them to continue sharing their location with you as long as they feel comfortable.

Location Tracking Scams to Be Aware Of

There are a few different common scams that are designed to gather your location information or to profit off of your desire to find someone else’s location. We list these scams below so you can keep an eye out for them and avoid losing your personal location data or other sensitive information.

Location tracking scams to be aware of include:

• Websites or services that offer to track a location through phone number alone – this can not be done legally, and no cell phone carrier service would allow this
• Websites, services, and apps that ask for subscription fees or large amounts of money to show you location data, in addition to hiding information behind paywalls
• Websites, services, and apps that request your personal data and sensitive information in order to show you someone’s location
• Apps and spyware that claim to be helpful for tracking someone’s location, but once you install them, they illegally track your information instead

Always be cautious when using online services to track someone’s location. We recommend sticking to the location-sharing services installed on your phone, a reputable tracking device when legal, or a third-party app that is verified as legitimate in order to gather the location information you need.

How Do I Protect My Location Information?

Protecting your location information can be challenging, as many of the websites, apps, and services we access today request your location information. Some of these same websites and apps may even need your location information to work properly.

That being said, you can still protect your location information by limiting the access people have to your location and only giving your location information to websites when it is totally unavoidable, such as using your GPS location to call a ride through a reputable rideshare app.

You can turn your location-sharing off in the settings of your phone, and if you want to make sure that no one can access your information, you may want to remove location-sharing privileges from Google Maps or Apple’s FindMy service.

Take the time to review why an app, service, or website wants your location information before you consent to sharing it, and regularly review which services have your location details, turning off the ones you no longer use.

Keeping Your Location Details Private

Tracking someone’s location or having your own location tracked can be stressful, and it’s important to keep in mind the laws in your state if you wish to share or access the location information of another person. Many people search tools give individuals the ability to search for others easily, but that doesn’t mean that illegal activities can be pursued once such knowledge is had in hand.

It’s always important to keep your location details as private as possible when online and only share your location information or access the location information of people who consent to share this personal, private data with you.