How to completely disable surveillance on Android: 15 proven methods

Your smartphone Android knows more about you than you think. Even when you're not actively using it, the system and apps collect data about your location, habits, search queries, and even how you interact with the screen. This information is used for targeted advertising, personalization of services - and sometimes transferred to third parties without your explicit consent.

The problem is not only with Google or the device manufacturer. Even common apps from Play Market (from social networks to weather widgets) often request redundant permissions in order to collect data in the background. The good news is that most surveillance can be disabled without special knowledge or root access. In this article - relevant ways for 2026 to limit data collection, including hidden settings of Android 14/15 and new privacy features from Google.

We will look at both basic methods (disabling geolocation, limiting advertising profiles) and advanced ones (blocking telemetry via ADBalternative DNS, account isolation). Important: some settings may affect usability - for example, turning off location history will deprive you of personalized recommendations in Google Maps. But the choice is always yours.

1. Disabling Google's main tracking tools

The Corporation Google embeds Android several data collection systems that work by default. They can be deactivated through your account settings or directly in the smartphone menu. Let's start with the most obvious - location history and activities in web services.

Go to Settings → Google → Google account management (or open myaccount.google.com to browser). Here you are interested in two sections:

• 📍 Location history - records all your movements with a time reference. Disable the slider and delete existing data through “Manage History.”
• 🔍 Activity in web services and applications - saves search queries, videos watched on YouTube, actions in Google Assistant and other services. Deactivate and clear the history.

Pay attention to the “Advertising personalization” item in the same menu. Here you can reset advertising ID (Advertising ID) - a unique code that is used to display targeted advertising. After the reset, the apps will see you as a “new user”, but the ID will automatically be restored after a few days. To completely block it, additional steps will be required (see section 4).

⚠️ Attention: Turning off location history does not prevent apps (such as Google Maps or Yandex.Maps) from determining your current location via GPS or Wi-Fi networks. This only stops recording and storing data in your Google account.

2. Limiting permissions for applications

Each application on Android requests access to certain device functions: camera, microphone, contacts, files. Many people abuse these permissions. For example, a flashlight should not have access to your SMS, and a game should not have access to geolocation. You can check and revoke unnecessary permissions manually. Candy Crush — to geolocation. You can manually check and revoke unnecessary permissions.

Open Settings → Applications → Permissions (on some firmware the path may differ: Settings → Privacy → Manager permissions). Here you'll see a list of all the permissions (camera, microphone, location, etc.) and the apps that use them. Click on any permission - for example, "Location" - and turn off access for unnecessary apps.

Pay special attention to:

• 📱 Social networks (Facebook, Instagram, TikTok): They collect as much data as possible, including contacts and call history.
• 🛒 Shopping and banking apps: They often do not need access to location or microphone.
• 🎮 Games: Most games ask for permission to display ads, and not for gameplay.

For convenience, use the “Allow only during use” mode (if available). For example, Google Maps will see your location only when the application is open, and not in the background.

Open a list of all installed applications

Check permissions for each (especially "Location" and "Microphone")

Disable unnecessary ones or limit access to "Only during usage"

Delete applications that ask for suspiciously many permissions-->

⚠️ Attention: Some applications (for example, WhatsApp or Telegram) may stop working correctly if you revoke access to contacts or files. Before changing permissions, check whether this will not break functionality.

3. Advertising ID blocking and tracker restriction

Advertising ID (Advertising ID) is a unique code on your device that is used by advertising networks to display targeted ads. It can be reset or blocked completely, but this cannot be done using standard means. You will need one of two things: Android this cannot be done. You will need one of two things:

1. Install an application like AppBrain Ad Detector or Blokadathat blocks trackers at the DNS level.
2. Use ADB-command to disable the identifier (works without root access).

For the second option, connect the phone to the computer, turn on USB debugging (Settings → System → About phone → Build number - press 7 times, then return to Settings → System → For developers) and execute in the terminal:

adb shell settings put global limit_ad_tracking 1

This command enables ad tracking restriction mode. To check if the disabling worked, use:

adb shell settings get global limit_ad_tracking

If the answer is 1, then the identifier is blocked.

Additionally, you can disable personalized advertising in the settings Google (Settings → Google → Advertising) and reset the identifier. However, this does not prevent applications from collecting data in other ways (for example, through analytics Firebase or SDK Facebook).

What are SDKs and why are they dangerous?

SDK (Software Development Kit) is a set of tools for developers, which is built into applications. Many SDKs (for example, from Facebook, Google Analytics or AppMetrica) automatically collect data about users: device model, OS version, time of use, geolocation, and even behavior in the application. This data is transferred to the SDK developer’s servers, where they can be used for analysis or sale to advertisers. For example, SDK Facebook tracks activity even if you do not have an account. social networks!

4. Using alternative DNS and VPN

Even if you have disabled data collection in the settings, some applications and sites continue to track your activity through DNS queries and IP address. To prevent this, you can:

• 🔒 Configure private DNS (for example, Cloudflare, Quad9 or NextDNS), which blocks tracking domains.
• 🌍 Use VPN with the function of blocking ads and trackers (for example, ProtonVPN, Mullvad or AdGuard VPN).

To change DNS, go to Settings → Network and Internet → Private DNS and enter the address of one of the providers:

Provider	DNS Address	Features
Cloudflare	1dot1dot1dot1.cloudflare-dns.com	Fast, blocks malicious sites
Quad9	dns.quad9.net	Filters phishing and malware
NextDNS	Individual (registration required)	Flexible settings for blocking trackers
AdGuard DNS	dns.adguard-dns.com	Blocks advertising and analytics

For complete anonymity, combine private DNS with VPN. For example, ProtonVPN has a built-in tracker blocker (NetShield), and AdGuard VPN specializes in advertising filtering and analytics. Remember that some banking applications can block access when using a VPN - in this case, add them to the exceptions.

5. Disabling hidden Android telemetry

Android sends to servers Google sends data about device use to servers: information about failures, application statistics, even keyboard logs. This is called telemetry, and it can be partially or completely disabled. Methods depend on the system version:

For Android 12 and later:

1. Go to Settings → Google → Services on the device → Diagnostics and reviews.
2. Turn off “Send usage data and diagnostics.”

For Android 10/11:

1. Open Settings → Google → Services on device → Other settings.
2. Deactivate “Diagnostics and feedback.”

On devices with firmware from manufacturers (Samsung, Xiaomi, Huawei), there may be additional data collection options. For example, on Samsung go to Settings → Accounts and archiving → Backup and recovery and disable “Send diagnostic data.”

To completely disable telemetry you will need ADBConnect the phone to the PC and run:

adb shell pm uninstall --user 0 com.google.android.feedback

This command removes the system application responsible for sending error reports. Be careful: after this you will not be able to send log files when contacting support.

⚠️ Attention: On some devices (especially with firmware MIUI or EMUI), disabling telemetry can lead to malfunctions of branded services (for example, a theme store or cloud storage).

6. Isolating accounts and using multiple profiles

One of the most effective ways to limit surveillance is separation of accounts for different user profiles, for example, you can create:

• 🔐 Main profile - for work, banking applications and important services.
• 🎭 Guest profile —for social networks, games and random applications.
• 🛡️ Restricted profile —for children or temporary use (without access to contacts, location etc.).

To add a new profile, go to Settings → System → Multiple users (on some devices the path may be different). The guest profile will not contain your personal data, and applications will not be able to associate activity with the main account. This is especially useful if you give the phone to other people or install suspicious ones. app.

Additionally, you can use work profiles (via Android for Work or applications like Island from Oasis Feng). They create an isolated “sandbox” for applications, where they do not have access to the main profile data. For example, Facebook in a work profile will not see your contacts or files.

For maximum privacy, combine profiles with separate accounts. Google. For example, for social networks, create a second account without linking it to real data. This way trackers will not be able to link your activity with your email or phone number from your main profile. Instagram with email or phone number from the main profile.

7. Advanced methods: blocking at the system level

If you are ready to go beyond the standard settings, consider the following methods:

1. Blocking via hostsfile

File hosts allows you to redirect requests to tracking domains to an “empty” address. To do this:

1. Install an application like AdAway (requires root access) or Blokada (works without root).
2. Add domains Google, Facebook and other trackers to the blacklist (the list can be found on GitHub in repositories like StevenBlack/hosts).

2. Using Firewallapplications

Applications like NetGuard or AFWall+ (requires root) allow you to block network access for individual apps. For example, you can prevent Facebook from connecting to the Internet in the background or completely disable network access for unnecessary services.

3. Installing custom firmware

Firmware like LineageOS, GrapheneOS or CalyxOS are initially focused on privacy. They remove proprietary services Google, replace them with open analogs and include additional security mechanisms. For example, GrapheneOS isolates applications in “sandboxes” and blocks access to device identifiers.

4. Disabling Google Play Services (for experienced users)

Services Google Play is the main collection channel data. They can be disabled or deleted (requires root), but this will lead to the inoperability of many applications, including Play Market. An alternative is to use the application store F-Droid or Aurora Store (anonymous client for Play Market).

⚠️ Attention: Advanced methods (especially custom firmware). and deletion Google Play Services) may disrupt the operation of banking applications, services Google and other critical functions. Before making changes, make a backup copy of your data.

8. data-i="240">Technical settings are only part of the solution. To reduce surveillance as much as possible, change your daily habits:

Technical settings are only part of the solution. To reduce surveillance as much as possible, change your daily habits:

• 🔍 Use alternative search engines: DuckDuckGo, Startpage or Qwant do not save query history.
• 📧 Go to private mail: ProtonMail, Tutanota or Skiff do not scan emails to display ads.
• 🗺️ Use Osmand or Magic Earth instead of Google Maps.
• 💬 Replace instant messengers: Signal or Session encrypt messages and do not collect metadata (unlike WhatsApp or Telegram).

Also check regularly:

• 📱 List of applications: remove unused apps (they can collect data in the background).
• 🔄 System updates: in new versions Android additional privacy settings often appear.
• 📊 Google account activity: clear your history once a month myactivity.google.com.

Remember: complete anonymity on a smartphone is impossible, but each step reduces the amount collected data about you. Even turning off geolocation for unnecessary applications or switching to a private browser (Bromite, Firefox Focus) significantly complicates the task for trackers.

💡

To check what data about you has already been collected, use the service Google Takeout. It allows you to download an archive with all the information that Google stores about you: location history, search queries, data. with YouTube, Google Fit and even voice recordings from Google Assistant.

FAQ: Frequently asked questions about surveillance on Android

Is it possible to completely disable surveillance without root access?

No, it is impossible to completely disable surveillance without root, since some of the data is collected at the system level (for example, telemetry Google Play Services). However, the combination of methods from this article (disabling location history, blocking advertising ID, using VPN and alternative DNS) reduces data collection by 80-90%. The remaining 10% will require root access or custom firmware.

Why does Google Maps still know where I am after disabling location history? was?

Google Maps uses a separate data storage system - Chronology (Timeline). It must be disabled separately: open the application Google Maps, go to profile → “Your chronology” → “Settings” (gear) → “Disable chronology”. for Google Maps in the application menu and disable access to location in the background.

Which applications collect the most data?

According to research Exodus Privacy i AppCensus, leaders in data collection:

• Facebook i Instagram - track location, contacts, call history, activity in other applications.
• TikTok - collects data about the device, network, even clicks on the screen (through built-in analytics).
• Google Chrome — synchronizes browser history, passwords, autofill data.
• Banking applications (for example, SberBank Online, Tinkoff) - often request access to location, contacts and SMS.
• Games with advertising (for example, from King, Supercell) - use SDK for collecting data about the device and behavior.

You can check applications for trackers through services Exodus or AppCensus.

How to check which applications are using a microphone or camera?

In Android 12 and later there is a built-in access indicator microphone/camera (green dot in the upper right corner of the screen). To see the full history:

1. Go to Settings → Privacy → Permission Manager.
2. Select “Microphone” or “Camera.”
3. See which apps have recently used these features.

On Android 10/11 install apps like Access Dots or Permission Monitorthat track permission usage in real time.

Will work Google Pay after disabling some Google services?

Depends on which services you disabled:

• If you only reset advertising ID or disabled location history, Google Pay will continue to work.
• If you deleted Google Play Services or installed custom firmware without Google services, Google Pay stops functioning (required SafetyNet and Google Mobile Services).
• Use of VPN or alternative DNS usually does not affect Google Pay, but some banks may block payments if they suspect “unusual activity” (for example, if the VPN server is located in another country).

An alternative is to use other payment systems, for example Samsung Pay (on devices Samsung) or banking applications with support Mir Pay/Apple Pay.