Location SMS - Locate your device with a text, even when it's offline 📱🌎

@amrith Sorry but there are restrictions for iOS :(

@anthilemoon For locating the device using a text, this is what happens: Location SMS receives a text message and checks if the text contains 'Where are you?'. If the text contains 'Where are you?' then the app will check if you have allowed the sender to request your location or the text or the text contains an authorisation code. If that is true then Location SMS will find your location using GPS and replies with a google maps Url with a pinpoint on your location. However, if someone had stolen your phone and it was turned off, you could still send them a 'Where are you?' text and the second the thief turns it on, the app would receive the message and instantly reply with his/her location.

@astghik_azaryan For locating the device using a text, this is what happens: Location SMS receives a text message and checks if the text contains 'Where are you?'. If the text contains 'Where are you?' then the app will check if you have allowed the sender to request your location or the text or the text contains an authorisation code. If that is true then Location SMS will find your location using GPS and replies with a google maps Url with a pinpoint on your location. For the Geofences, every set period of time, the app will get your current location in the background and check if you have entered or exited one of your Geofences. When you enter or exit a Geofence, a text can be sent to contacts of your choice.

@babken_karapetyan Thank you! Try it out to see how well it works 👍

@troync3 👍👍

@alekplay That is correct, the app does listen for every incoming message but the messages are never sent to a server to be checked if they contain the appropriate commands, it all happens locally on your device. The messages are never stored either. Having every messaged checked may sound worrying which is why a privacy policy in place making it illegal to collect any information about your messages, location or people in your contact list. Any more questions then feel free to message me, have a great day!

@ben_s88 No mobile data is required for Location SMS to work, it just needs some service to send and receive texts. However, the app will not be able to locate the phone after a thief has switched it off and replaced them before switching it back on again. Let's hope that doesn't happen!

@pointandstare You can set an authorisation code that allows you to locate it from any device without setting up any account. Just remember to code and text 'Where are you?' + the code. If you don't want to use have to type the code each time with certain phones e.g. you have a second phone then you can select that contact to not require the code. However if you or a friend haven't got a phone handy, then Location SMS can't help locate your phone but most people have phones these days, just ask someone to text your phone for you to locate it. Have a nice day :)

@jamie_turner So, the 'security' factor stopping anyone texting your phone is the code? As long as you remember it, of course ;)

@pointandstare Yes

@ugur2nd You need to text your own phone number not the authorisation code. For example text your phone number 'Where are you? 9230' or whatever your authorisation code is set and it will reply with your current location.

@abetancort Apple's Find My iPhone can only locate the device when it has an internet connection whereas Location SMS requires no internet so you will always be able to find your device even if it's offline. To prove that I can not collect information about your location, you can use a tool like this Android App I found https://play.google.com/store/ap... to see what data is being sent and received via the internet on each app. Using that tool you can see that Location SMS never sends any of your information outside of the app via the internet so there would be no way of us viewing your location, contacts, text messages etc and misuse that information.

@jamie_turner You system need to have the movile signal, in Europe if you have movile signal you have a 98% chance that you have 3G or better Internet coverage. If someone were to try to swap the sim (impossible to do in an iPhone or iPad with a password without making it unusable) for one that does not have Internet (which is very unlikely that anyone can find one nowadays in Europe) in the moment it connects any Internet gateway you would receive a notice and you would have the device located and have control of your iOS device (making sounds, locking it, putting a permanent message on the screen, deleting it) without the other party being able to interrupt you. If you were to send the wipe command, it will irremediably delete the iOS device no matter what the person holding it tries to do it will totally erase and reset to factory by itself). And if you have activated (default) Find My iPhone in your device, to reactivate a deleted one, he would need your AppleID, password and a unique token securely that Apple’s delivers securely to your other authorized devices. By the way Apple´s Find My Phone will, if so desired by the user - disabled by default, record the last location of the iOS device before loosing connection or being shutdown.

@jamie_turner Maybe for other phones or markets where the Internet coverage is not so widespread. I have not looked into Google own location product since I don’t have an android phone in my home.

@gonzalo_morales Sorry no, iOS has restrictions preventing me from creating something like this

@augustusonyeka Thank you, I plan to translate the app soon to reach a wider audience