WANT to expose a snooper looking through your phone? There’s a simple setting that’ll catch them red-handed.
But you’ll need to switch it on ahead of time or it won’t work.
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The trick works using Screen Time, which is a built-in Apple feature on your iPhone.
It’s switched off by default, but you can turn it on to track snoopers.
Screen Time is meant to be used as a way to keep track of how much you’re using your mobile.
And you can even use it to set limits – even on specific apps – if you think you’re spending too much time scrolling.
Once you activate Screen Time, it stays on in the background.
And it’ll pull together loads of data about how you’re using your phone.
This is the key to seeing if someone has been having a peek at your mobile while you’re not looking.
HOW TO TURN ON SCREEN TIME
There’s an entire section dedicated to Screen Time in your Settings app.
Just go to Settings > Screen Time and then toggle the feature on.
Then it’ll get to work – but keep in mind it’ll only show data collected after it was turned on.
Anything that happened on your phone before you activated Screen Time won’t appear on the feature.
If you change your mind at any time, you can turn Screen Time off by following the same steps.
USE SCREEN TIME TO SEE IF SOMEONE IS SNOOPING
Screen Time reveals exactly when certain apps have been used.
This is a great way to see if someone has been using an app when you know you weren’t on your phone.
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Maybe you were fast asleep and it was a 3am WhatsApp check – or perhaps someone looked through your photos while you were in the toilet.
Whatever the case, it’s easy to check.
Just go to Settings > Screen Time > See All App & Website Activity.
Make sure you have it set to Today and look at the list at the bottom. Also, make sure it’s showing the apps view and not categories.
SCREEN TIME’S SECRET EYE PERK
There’s another benefit of Screen Time – a clever eye strain reducing feature…
Go into Settings > Screen Time and then tap on Screen Distant.
Then turn the Screen Distance feature on.
It’s meant to protect you from eye strain by warning you if you’re holding your iPhone too close to your face.
“Viewing something like a device or book too closely for an extended period of time can increase eye strain and the risk of myopia,” Apple explained.
“The Screen Distance feature in Screen Time uses the TrueDepth camera to detect when you hold your iPhone closer than 12 inches for an extended period, and encourages you to move it farther away.
“Screen Distance can help children engage in healthy viewing habits that can lower their risk of myopia and can give people of all ages the opportunity to reduce digital eyestrain.”
If you get the alert, it’ll appear as a whole-screen pop-up.
And you’ll need to either tap Continue or move your iPhone more than 12 inches away from you’re face.
Picture Credit: Apple / The Sun
Then simply tap on the app in question – like Instagram, Photos, or WhatsApp.
You can then see the exact hour slots where that specific app was used.
And if you hold your finger on it, it’ll even show how many minutes it was used for.
So if you had a lovely night’s sleep and your Messages app was opened at 2am, you know something is up.
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Another option is to go to Settings > Screen Time > See All App & Website Activity, and then scroll down to the Pickups setion.
This will show the times when your phone was picked up.
And it’ll also flag the time of the “First Pickup” of the day.
That’s another great way of catching suspicious movement, especially in the night.