iPhone is embedded with the location sharing feature, people get to share their location with their friends, family and loved ones so they know they are in safety.
However for privacy reasons, Apple has made it possible that people can stop sharing their location with others at anytime they want without the other party knowing about it.
Why you can’t see someone’s location
#1. Location is turned off
If the other party has turned off their location, you won’t be able to locate them. If you turn off your location, they also will not be able to locate you.
#2. They are out of network coverage
The person you are trying to access their location might be in a “no network” area and that’s why you can access their location.
#3. Phone is switched off
If they switched off their phones deliberately or they ran out of battery so their phone is switched off. Their location services feature will not be available if their device is switched off.
#4. The other person’s device is in airplane mode
If the other party switched their device into Airplane mode, you will definitely not locate them because their location service feature will be unavailable.
#5. The other person has not signed-in on the find my application
This app helps to track people you shared location with . If the other person did not sign into the app, you will not see their location.
#6. Share my location is turned off on ‘Find My’ App
If the other person switched off Share My Location option of the Find My application, you won’t see their location.
#7. The other person’s date and time is not correct
If the device’s time and date is incorrect, location sharing may not work.
How to know if someone stopped sharing location on iPhone
These methods will help you know if someone has stopped sharing their location with you.
#1. Check your phone’s notifications
Although you won’t get notified if someone turned off their location. But through the Find My app, you can know when a contact changes location or has stopped sharing their location with you. You have to allow notifications from the Find My app, then you will receive notifications about your contact.
Messages you will receive will look like this: GPS off, Location turned off, No Location found, a red exclamation mark (!) Right next to their name or profile image/icon.
#2. Check from another device
Sometimes the issue might be from your device. Simply log in from another device or use another person’s account to check the person’s location.
#3. Location is not on the map
You have to check if the other user is on the map. Open the Find My app and check People’s list. If they have previously shared their location with you, an avatar head will appear on the map. Check the People list by tapping on the People tab to see a list of people sharing their location with you.
- Navigate to Find My applicationm
- Choose People tab.
- A list of people who have shared their location with you will appear on the screen.
- Search for the person, if their name is not on the list, they they stopped sharing their location with you.
#4. Location not available
Location not available message can appear on the Find My app if the other user is offline or has turned off their location. You will find this message right underneath the person’s name.
Sometimes there might be other reason this message appears; network issues, outdated iOS can be the cause of this message.
What to do if location sharing is not working on your device
When you are not logged in to your iCloud account, location sharing may not work in iPhone. Also if you disable location services, it will definitely not work.
#1. Sign in to your iCloud account
Sign in to your iCloud account because the location sharing feature on Find My uses iCloud to locate another device. Go to Settings > Tap “Sign In to your iPhone” > Type in your Apple ID and password > Type in verification code which will be sent to your phone number or any linked device.
#2. Enable iPhone location service
If you disabled your iPhone’s location service, you have to enable it so that your location sharing can work. Go to Settings > Privacy > Location services > Turn on the Location services button.
#3. Turn on Find My on iPhone and share location for Find My
Another way to resolve the issue is to turn on Find My iPhone and Share Location for Find My
From Settings > Press Apple ID > Choose Find My option > Tap ‘Find My iPhone’ and turn on the option > Then go back to Find My menu and toggle Share My Location button. Allow Location Permission On Your Device.
The Find My app on iPhone needs location permission to locate your device, allow location permission to resolve the issue. Settings > Privacy > Location Services > Find My> tap Ask Next Time or When I Share or tap While Using The App. A blue tick mark will appear beside any of the options you tick.
#4. Disable content and privacy restrictions
When location service is denied access under content and privacy restrictions settings, sharing location will be a problem for the user.
- Go to Settings.
- Choose Screen Time.
- Select Content and Privacy Restrictions.
- Under Privacy section, click on Location services and select Allow Changes.
- Scroll down and turn on the location services option.
- Click Share My Location option.
- Open Find My menu.
- Turn on Find My iPhone and Share My Location option.
Sharing Location is a very vital issue, be careful and don’t give out your location to someone you are not comfortable sharing it with. If you are concerned someone may have access to your iCloud account, you can turn off location services.
Will I notice when someone stops sharing their location?
When you turn off location sharing on Android or iOS device, contacts won’t be directly notified about it. But if they go and check they will definitely find out because they will see your location disabled. Also some features might not work as expected when you turn off location services.
Things can really be awkward if your contact notice you stopped sharing your location, the fact that they don’t get notified is a good thing.
Can someone temporarily disable their location?
Yes, you can disable your location temporarily. Simply disable location by going to Settings > Privacy > Location services > Turn off location services option.
You can also do that by restricting permissions for some apps to use location. Settings > Privacy > Location services > Turn on location services option > scroll and select the app, tap Never to restart location access.
Another alternative is to turn off Share My Location in Find My app. Go to Find My application > Select the Me tab > Turn off Share My Location option.
Can someone know if you checked their location?
Yes, by can checking out people who they granted permission to follow them on Find My app. You can view their location anytime and they will not know you did.
How do I stop sharing location on Android?
Android location sharing may be restricted based on country, age(18+) .
Open Google Maps app > Tap in your profile picture > Select Location Sharing > Tap the person you want to restrict from seeing your location by tapping their profile picture.
If someone sends you a request to see your location, simply reject the request if that’s not what you want.
Can you know how many times someone viewed your location?
No, your device won’t even notify you about it.
Can location turn on by itself?
Yes, system apps use GPS to provide accurate results. These apps are GPS driven, they ask for permissions to enable the device access your location. Even if you disable “Remotely locate this device”, location can be enabled once your device is connected to a Wi-Fi.
Is it possible for someone to track your phone if your location is incorrect?
Yes, both iOS and Android can be tracked in the absence of a data connection. When your device is connected to a data network or Wi-Fi, it uses assisted GPS also known as A-GPS. It will use the location of nearby cell towers and known Wi-Fi networks to detect your device location.
This article was first published on October 7, 2022 7:06 p.m. WAT
I am an experienced tech and innovation writer. It’s been 2 years+ I started writing at Terecle, covering mostly Consumer electronics and Productivity. In my spare time, I enjoy reading and learning the latest happenings around the tech ecosystem.