# What should I know about Bluetooth tracking as an activist? **URL:** https://discuss.privacyguides.net/t/what-should-i-know-about-bluetooth-tracking-as-an-activist/28216 **Category:** Questions **Created:** 2025-06-09T20:12:25Z **Posts:** 9 ## Post 1 by @devotee — 2025-06-09T20:12:25Z Sorry if my English has errors. I’m at medium to high risk of imprisonment for joining an anti-corruption activist group. I must be able to continue to use the internet and understand there is risk with it, but I want a security plan that gives us the best chance at safety. I did a lot of research and decided that I will buy a phone to run GrapheneOS without a mobile plan. We have many uses for Bluetooth like Briar. Also we make long trips for our work and some members need to listen to news or music to last the trip, but since we are mostly in loud areas we’re stuck with noise canceling headphones which always use Bluetooth. My concern is if our phones or headphones could be tracked with Bluetooth and what we can do about it. I looked at some other posts on this forum but didn’t find details on how the tracking works and what solutions there are. GrapheneOS forum doesn’t give an answer: [Bluetooth address tracking and randomization - GrapheneOS Discussion Forum](https://discuss.grapheneos.org/d/7677-bluetooth-address-tracking-and-randomization/) --- ## Post 2 by @jonah — 2025-06-09T20:22:42Z Absolutely. There are even scanning systems that tie in with surveillance cameras, so the scanners find nearby Bluetooth devices and the cameras tie that data to facial recognition. So pretty quickly they can not only determine where a device is, but who was using it. The only thing that saves Bluetooth from being a _total_ nightmare is its very short range, but if you are at risk of being physically tracked or if you frequent public places that are likely to have systems like the one I mentioned, then Bluetooth is very dangerous to use. * * * Bluetooth is very confusing because it can refer to _Bluetooth_ or _Bluetooth Low Energy_, which despite the name is almost entirely different than Bluetooth technically. BLE is _slightly_ better and more secure than Bluetooth, but there are still real-world methods of tracking BLE: > **[Bluetooth signals can be used to identify and track smartphones](https://jacobsschool.ucsd.edu/news/release/3461?id=3461)** > > A team of engineers at the University of California San Diego has demonstrated for the first time that the Bluetooth signals emitted constantly by our mobile phones have a unique fingerprint that can be used to track individuals’... Additionally, it is very hard to tell whether you are using BLE or Bluetooth with a particular device, I don’t think it says anywhere in the OS. In any case though, the use of either is very discouraged. --- ## Post 3 by @devotee — 2025-06-11T01:27:57Z > [@jonah](#): > > There are even scanning systems that tie in with surveillance cameras Is it known which countries use this? --- ## Post 4 by @jonah — 2025-06-11T01:29:11Z I know of _shopping malls_ that do this. It is not very advanced technology, unfortunately. --- ## Post 5 by @CarefulMouse — 2025-06-11T01:41:09Z I wasn’t aware of facial recognition, but to give you an idea of how advanced and seemingly prevalent this is, here is a link. I see similar articles from almost 10 years ago, so its almost certainly more popular now. Seems to have a low barrier of entry as a benefit to the retailer. > **[Opinion | In Stores, Secret Bluetooth Surveillance Tracks Your Every Move...](https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/06/14/opinion/bluetooth-wireless-tracking-privacy.html)** > > As you shop, “beacons” are watching you, using hidden technology in your phone. --- ## Post 6 by @mangomango — 2025-06-11T06:49:50Z Doesn’t MAC address randomization solves this ? Since the identifier always changes for each device connected ? I naively hoped that it was that simple :joy: Or the name of the device is also shared ? --- ## Post 7 by @jonah — 2025-06-11T20:44:09Z That is a Wi-Fi feature, not Bluetooth. Bluetooth **LE** (only) has some device address randomization, but like I said above there are other methods of tracking BLE devices using _non_-device-address information that still makes it dangerous. --- ## Post 8 by @Rasta — 2025-06-12T04:01:06Z If you don’t mind using IEMs, you could look at wired earbuds with a battery running a local noise cancelling system. I have an old pair Audio Technica ones that just take a AAA battery in the mic/volume rocker part and you can turn noise cancelling on and off on them. This way you won’t have any Bluetooth signals going, just straight hard wired audio. Edit: > **[Amazon.com: Audio-Technica ATH-ANC100BT QuietPoint Wireless In-Ear Active...](https://www.amazon.com/Audio-Technica-ATH-ANC100BT-QuietPoint-Noise-Cancelling-Headphones/dp/B07N3RNHX9)** > > The ath-anc100bt quiet point wireless in-ear headphones combine Audio-Technician's proprietary active noise-cancelling technology with Bluetooth wireless technology to give you greater freedom and listening pleasure in areas of high ambient noise... These are a newer version of what I mentioned above. --- ## Post 9 by @TheManWithNoPlan — 2025-06-12T06:13:21Z This guy has a good solution. Click on 2:02 in the video. > **[Make Your Phone Invisible Tips [DEFEAT BLUETOOTH / WIFI WIRELESS TRACKING]](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hev53srx7d4&feature=youtu.be)** > > MAKE YOUR PHONE INVISIBLE TIPS: Your smartphone is steadily spitting out a constant flow of countless wireless identifiers. Software solutions exist to mitig...