Is your smartphone bugging you? Experts give you the answer

Many people have had the experience of talking about a product at the dinner table and shortly afterwards an advertisement for the product appears on their phone.

It seems obvious to think that the mobile phone is listening in, but the reality is more nuanced, and both the technology and the threat picture look different than many people realize.

The smartphone has everything in one. It has a microphone, constant connectivity and apps that want to know as much as possible about the user.

This creates a sense of surveillance that more and more people are carrying around in their everyday lives.

The question is whether it’s actually the sound of your conversations that’s being exploited, or whether there’s something else that plays a bigger role.

When the call becomes an advertisement

Technically, it’s possible to eavesdrop on a person via smartphone, smart TV or speaker with voice control.

It requires an active microphone signal, software with rights to use it and a channel to transmit the data.

On modern phones, access to the microphone is controlled through a permissions system where apps need permission and the system displays small symbols on the screen when the microphone is turned on.

Nevertheless, malicious software can try to exploit the flaws, especially when the manufacturer rarely releases new updates.

This happens especially on low-cost devices where security is rarely at the top of the list.

For most ordinary users, however, systematic personal eavesdropping via the phone is unlikely.

Cybercriminals make money faster from phishing, fake banking websites and identity theft than from reviewing hours of audio clips from individuals.

Experts point out that the feeling of being “bugged” is often more closely linked to aggressive tracking than to actual microphone recordings.

Apps record searches, location, clicks and behavior across services, and that combination can make for an advertising experience that seems eerily accurate.

This shift from eavesdropping to tracking is described by Chip.de as the main explanation for the strangely accurate ads.

Where does the real risk lie?

The most vulnerable products are often inexpensive mass-produced devices such as cheap surveillance cameras, smart bulbs, boxes with microphones or other smart devices with no clear manufacturer background.

Many of these products have obscure apps, weak default passwords and connection to servers unknown to the user.

Vulnerabilities can be exploited to turn on cameras, activate microphones or use the device as a gateway to the rest of the home network.

A jealous partner can install stalkerware on a phone, and state actors can attack journalists, activists and key people.

– “The worst attacks exist, but they are few and far between,” says Dennis-Kenji Kipker. He is a German-Japanese expert on IT security law and works as a professor of IT security law at Hochschule Bremen.

“For most people, digital security is more about curbing data hunger than fearing constant live monitoring.

A sensible starting point is to choose fewer smart devices with better updates and a clear data strategy.

This is especially true for devices in bedrooms, children’s rooms and home offices.

How to protect yourself in everyday life

There is no complete guarantee against misuse, but much can be done with small adjustments.

Update your system and apps regularly, only download apps from official stores, and regularly review which programs have access to the microphone and camera. Remove permissions from apps that don’t have a clear reason to record audio.

Turn off diagnostic and analytics features on smart speakers and TVs, delete saved voice commands and use physical microphone switches whenever possible.

Unsecure or low-cost products can be placed in a guest network so that an attack does not affect the entire home network at once.

If you work with particularly sensitive information, hold some meetings in rooms without smartphones and use a single, minimally configured device for the most critical calls.

The rest of the time, the most realistic strategy is to reduce tracking, choose your devices wisely and actively use the built-in privacy settings so that your smartphone is not a constant source of worry.