“He who fights with monsters should be careful lest he thereby become a monster. And if thou gaze long into an abyss, the abyss will also gaze into thee.” --F. Nietzsche
You see a cell phone held up before an endless sea. I see the Eye of Providence, the all-seeing eye, the ultimate surveillance tool we voluntarily welcome into our most intimate moments.
We leave it charging next to our beds whilst we slumber. It hears our deepest secrets and sees all of our expressions. We could not imagine our lives without it within our grasp.
It's never off even when you think it is. If you cannot remove the battery, it remains a steadfast sentinel for those who control and monitor it.
Your cell phone spies on you. The cameras watch, and the microphones listen. For whom do they spy? That's a good question. It is not as if all data is reviewed by humans--that would would take an actual god. A god who could hear and see all things at all times and without delay would be omnipresent. Your cell phone doesn't have to be an omnipresent god however. It simply has to have a program that listens and watches.
An application, a list of text commands written in a computer programming language that might as well be Egyptian hieroglyphs to the average person, sees or hears something of interest, and then an analyst gets an alert to watch your phone more closely. They type in a few lines of code, and your particular all-seeing eye is being observed as if by Sauron himself. What does he see? What does he hear? Your phone is always with you, and it is always near. What does he not see or hear?
Cell phone data is collected at all times, and it reveals way more than most people realize.
Multiple cell towers make simultaneous calculations of distance and time. They determine that you're riding in the same car as John and Jane Smith. The calculations cannot be wrong. Who are John and Jane Smith, and what is their relationship to you? Are you friends, family, or accomplices? Did you just commit a crime, or are you on the way to commit one?
In addition to regular cell tower triangulation data, the police and other government agencies are using Stingray tracking devices that simulate cell phone towers and trick phones into connecting to them. If the police have them, criminals will have them too. You should also avoid using other WiFi connections since those connections are even more dangerous. My phone has an unlimited data plan, and I never turn on WiFi while away from my home.
Cell phones are tracked to provide your location. Data is also combined from multiple cell phones to build relationship networks and provide travel patterns.
Reconsider leaving you phone at your bed side where it can be used to listen to your most intimate conversations. Let it charge in another room or leave it in your car while you sleep. That way what you're talking to your significant other about stays between just the two of you. Remember that it isn't off even when you've shut it down too. There's a battery in it that you cannot remove for a reason. I have powered down my phone multiple times before I went to sleep to have it back on the next morning.
Consider using a small piece of tape to cover the camera that observes your face while the phone is in use to further protect your privacy. Your web cameras on computers should also be either disconnected or covered when not in use. If you are going to a meeting where propriety or other sensitive information is going to be discussed, request that the participants leave their cell phones outside the room. Do you use your cell phone for your crypto keys and other valuable data? I suggest you use a hardware wallet instead.
Your cell phone is a computer and needs anti-virus and malware protection. Make sure you have a quality security application installed such as ESET's Mobile Security for Android.
Hopefully these tips will help you have better habits regarding your cell phone. Depending on who you are and what activities you're involved in, your level of risk may be very high or very low. Act accordingly. I treat my phone like most people do, and its presence is mostly ignored and considered safe. Depending on where I'm going and who I am with however, the cell phone is left behind to maintain my privacy.