trackersAnywhere
Privacy Policy
for the Android app trackersAnywhere · Last updated: 2 August 2026
In short: trackersAnywhere sends nothing to any server. There is no account, no sign-in, no advertising, no analytics and no network access apart from the single feature described below, which is off by default. Everything the app measures stays on the device.
Who is responsible
- Provider
- Hannes Peterseim
- Postal address
-
Kleinschewskystr. 61
12555 Berlin
Germany - apps@petit-souris.de
What the app processes
Radio signals nearby
The app reads Bluetooth advertisements and, on request, Wi-Fi beacons. From those it derives: device address, broadcast name, signal strength, detected signature and timestamp. This data comes from other devices in the vicinity; the app stores it locally only.
Location
In tracking mode, drive mode and for the history, the app attaches your own position to each measurement so that the question “has this device accompanied me across several places?” can be answered. Without location permission, Bluetooth tracker detection still works — only without the place reference.
Camera and microphone
The optical camera check and the ultrasonic detector access the camera and microphone live. Nothing is recorded, stored or transmitted — the data is analysed in memory and discarded immediately.
NFC
If a tracker chip is held against the phone, the app reads its publicly readable content (such as the serial number and any lost-mode message) and displays it.
Where the data lives, and for how long
| What | Where | How long |
|---|---|---|
| Live measurements | memory | until the app closes; devices leave the list after 5 minutes without a signal |
| Sighting history (address, name, type, timestamps, places) | private app storage | 7 days, deleted automatically afterwards |
| Devices marked as your own | private app storage | until revoked or app data is cleared |
| Alert log (when a warning was last shown) | private app storage | 7 days |
| Settings | private app storage | until app data is cleared |
Private app storage cannot be read by other apps. Automatic backup to the cloud or
transfer to a new device is disabled
(allowBackup=false, data extraction rules exclude everything) — the
history contains movement data and should not leave the device on its own.
The only network feature
The app holds the INTERNET permission solely for the local
device search on Wi-Fi. It is off by default, must be switched on
explicitly on its own screen and runs only while that screen is open. It searches
exclusively within the Wi-Fi network the phone is currently connected to;
no connection leaves the local network, nothing is uploaded, and
no connection is made to a server of the provider or of any third party.
The search uses three procedures by which devices announce themselves on a local network: mDNS/DNS-SD (Bonjour), WS-Discovery (the route ONVIF prescribes for surveillance cameras) and SSDP (UPnP). Doing so sends search requests as multicast within the local network. If a device answers over SSDP, the app fetches the device description it names itself, in order to show a plain name, manufacturer and model; this happens only for addresses in the private address ranges and without following redirects.
In addition, and only on an explicit button press, the app can look for cameras that do not announce themselves. To do so it opens a connection to six ports commonly used by surveillance equipment, for every address in its own subnet, and closes it again immediately. Nothing is sent beyond the connection attempt itself — no data, no login, no retrieval. Every device on the network can see that connection attempt; the app states this above the button. This function never runs by itself and is started afresh for each search.
Sharing
None. The app passes nothing to the provider or to third parties. Reports (text, CSV, PDF, map image) are created only when the user asks for them; where they go is decided by the user alone through the device's share sheet.
Permissions and their purpose
- Bluetooth (scan, connect) — read advertisements; connect only when the user requests details or makes a tag ring
- Location (precise/approximate) — place measurements; on Android 11 and older also a technical prerequisite for Bluetooth scanning
- Wi-Fi state, nearby devices — search for hidden cameras
- Camera — optical camera check (no recording)
- Microphone — ultrasonic detector (no recording)
- NFC — read tracker chips held against the phone
- Notifications — show the stalking alert
- Foreground service (location, connected device) — continuous scanning in tracking, drive and guard mode while the screen is off
- Start after reboot — resume the standing guard after a restart
- Local network access (Android 16 and newer) — the same search; without this permission the system blocks it
- Internet — exclusively the local Wi-Fi search described above
Your rights
Because no data reaches the provider, the provider cannot give access to it, correct it or delete it. All data is on the device and can be deleted there:
- via “Clear history” in the app,
- via “Quit app” — which also switches the watchers off,
- or via Android Settings → Apps → trackersAnywhere → Storage → Clear data.
Children
The app is not directed at children under 13 and collects no data about them.
Changes
Changes to this policy are published here with a new date.