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cRuNcHiE

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jan 2, 2007
778
46
I've noticed my location icon is on all the time recently and Privacy>Location Services says FindFriends is using it in Geofence mode.

I'm presuming one of my friends has setup a ' Notify me when leaves/Arrives' reminder in FindFriends?

Thing is, there seems to be no way to tell who it is?

It would be nice to know who is accessing my location and why!
 

cRuNcHiE

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jan 2, 2007
778
46
why would you use the app then to begin with?

Because it can be handy sometimes if you are waiting for a friend to arrive so you can check their progress without having to call them while driving.

Or if you lose them at a busy place like a festival where saying " i'm by the tree" doesn't help!
 

The-Real-Deal82

macrumors P6
Jan 17, 2013
16,290
23,995
Wales, United Kingdom
Doesn't a friend or family member have to request your permission to use the app? I use it with my wife so we know where each other are. Not because we don't trust one another but because its handy if she is on her way home and not answering her phone. Its a useful app but when we set it up we had to invite each other and accept the invite.
 

cRuNcHiE

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jan 2, 2007
778
46
Yeah, you have to accept to share the location information with each other.

My issue is the only way to tell who is actually accessing your location info at any given time is by asking every one of your 'friends'

It might just be someone testing out the feature but seeing the location indication on the status bar all the time is annoying and also potentially a battery drainer.
 

The-Real-Deal82

macrumors P6
Jan 17, 2013
16,290
23,995
Wales, United Kingdom
Yeah, you have to accept to share the location information with each other.

My issue is the only way to tell who is actually accessing your location info at any given time is by asking every one of your 'friends'

It might just be someone testing out the feature but seeing the location indication on the status bar all the time is annoying and also potentially a battery drainer.
I don't know the answer to that question sorry. I only use it with one person and wouldn't use it with friends personally. :)
 

CosmoPilot

macrumors 68000
Nov 8, 2010
1,537
373
South Carolina
When not needed, you can simply go into the app and select "hide from followers"

This basically turns off the ability of others to request your location. When you are ready for them to 'track' you again, simply turn the aforementioned setting back on.

To answer the OP's question, there is currently no way to know which follower is following your location.
 

FSMBP

macrumors 68030
Jan 22, 2009
2,711
2,600
You can't do that, and I'm also wondering who uses that app for real.

It came out better useful when my daughter had to drive 6 hours to college; I was able to make sure she safely arrived at her school without constantly nagging her.
 

Shrink

macrumors G3
Feb 26, 2011
8,929
1,727
New England, USA
Macrumors is chock full of people who think that everyone else in the world should be exactly like them. The fact that others have different needs and requirements always frightens and confuses them.

It has nothing to do with my needs and requirements.

All OP has to do is shut the sucker off.

I am frequently frightened and confused, however.:eek::confused:
 

cRuNcHiE

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jan 2, 2007
778
46
Ok I've found which friend it is and it's because they were playing around with the new notify when leaves option.

Thing is they have now removed the notify but it is still showing Find friends is using my location!

If you're going to suggest something stupid like just turn it off then don't bother commenting. I use it and want it to work correctly .
 

GoCubsGo

macrumors Nehalem
Feb 19, 2005
35,741
153
Ok I've found which friend it is and it's because they were playing around with the new notify when leaves option.

Thing is they have now removed the notify but it is still showing Find friends is using my location!

If you're going to suggest something stupid like just turn it off then don't bother commenting. I use it and want it to work correctly .

Shutting off an app that is being used by an alleged friend to allegedly stalk you is hardly a stupid resolution. If you think you have a friend who is stalking you then that person is not exactly a friend.
 

cRuNcHiE

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jan 2, 2007
778
46
Shutting off an app that is being used by an alleged friend to allegedly stalk you is hardly a stupid resolution. If you think you have a friend who is stalking you then that person is not exactly a friend.

It seems to have gone now finally after a reboot.

I never said I was afraid or paranoid about it but it did highlight a flaw in the design as you cannot tell who is watching and when .

I wouldn't allow people to follow me who I wasn't totally fine with doing so but the issue was not being able to identify who was using the 'Notify when leaves feature ' . Shutting the entire app off is not a solution when its used many other reasons.
 

Mrbobb

macrumors 603
Aug 27, 2012
5,009
209
This post started badly when OP used the word, STALKING. Funny but not useful to get an answer.

This is a simple matter of how the app should work. I don't use it, but to me once you sign on to it, you agreed to belong to that "circle of friends."

I would ask, is that an agreement to give up your privacy always?

Can I temporarily "turn it off" like OK I give my phone number to friends, but I can temporarily set my phone to SEND TO VOICEMAIL when I don't want to answer the phone.

To me, yes, the App should tell you who's following you, that's just fair, you give out your privacy, and followers identifying themselves is just reciprocal, and if the App doesn't do that, then I don't like the App.

But, is the person really stalking you or he just followed you last time when u all went to this dinner and forgot to turn it off and the thing is just running in the background?

Anywhoo, it goes both ways right, is nice to know where he is, but the other way is stalking, mmmhhhhh...
 

cRuNcHiE

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jan 2, 2007
778
46
This post started badly when OP used the word, STALKING. Funny but not useful to get an answer.

This is a simple matter of how the app should work. I don't use it, but to me once you sign on to it, you agreed to belong to that "circle of friends."

I would ask, is that an agreement to give up your privacy always?

Can I temporarily "turn it off" like OK I give my phone number to friends, but I can temporarily set my phone to SEND TO VOICEMAIL when I don't want to answer the phone.

To me, yes, the App should tell you who's following you, that's just fair, you give out your privacy, and followers identifying themselves is just reciprocal, and if the App doesn't do that, then I don't like the App.

But, is the person really stalking you or he just followed you last time when u all went to this dinner and forgot to turn it off and the thing is just running in the background?

Anywhoo, it goes both ways right, is nice to know where he is, but the other way is stalking, mmmhhhhh...

I agree, perhaps the tin hat police did jump because I used the word stalking but potentially it could happen with a real stalker. I do not think I am being stalked but that is not the issue. Not knowing who is accessing my location is the issue.

The are two elements to the app. You can allow friends to 'Follow' you which basically means that at yours or their will they can LOG IN to the app and then see your location at that time.

This makes the location indicator show up but that goes when they close the app and my phone stops using the location.

At any time I can remove them from the Follow/friend list and I can't see them nor they me. Or I could choose Hide from all followers so no one can see me but I can see them .


The new element, is the 'Notify' part and this is where I had the issue. If a friend sets up a notify on me ( e.g Notify when leaves current location or arrives to X) This causes my phone to continuously have the location symbol appear and potentially it's draining my battery more waiting to tell them what I do.

I have no way to know which friend is doing this, why they are doing it , or a way to stop them except by blocking everyone. I'm not really bothered that they have one set up but I'd like control over my own battery!


For the tin hat people, if you haven't turned off 'traffic' on your iphone then apple is already tracking your every move.
 

chcn

macrumors newbie
Sep 23, 2016
5
5
Canada
... It would be nice to know who is accessing my location ...

I know this is more than five years later, so please don't jump on me for poor thread etiquette, but I was searching the internet for the answer to this question and this thread came up, so for the benefit of future searchers, I thought I would add the detailed answer:

To see which friends are receiving location notifications,

1. Tap Me.
2. Tap Notify Friends.
- Any notifications you set are listed below Add Notification.
- Any notifications friends set for your location appear below From My Friends.
3. To see when a friend is notified of your location, tap the friend’s name.

(Source: https://support.apple.com/kb/ph19434)

I don't know how long this feature has been here (I'm guessing a long time based on aziatiklover's response above), but I just tested it in iOS 12.1 and it works.
 
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