Privacy Radar for iPhone
Privacy Radar helps you notice Bluetooth devices and possible lens reflections around you, and tells you plainly how sure it is. If something here does not answer your question, email me — a real person reads it.
I aim to reply within two working days. It helps if you say which iPhone you have and which version of iOS it is running — you will find both in Settings → General → About.
A scan listens for the short public broadcasts nearby Bluetooth devices send, and compares what it hears against a built-in list of signatures for smart glasses and other wearables.
A detection does not prove that a device is recording or tracking you. It means a signal consistent with a certain kind of device was heard nearby. And a clean scan does not prove you are alone: many devices randomise or hide their identifiers, switch off their radios, or broadcast nothing while recording. Treat every result as a reason to look, not a verdict.
That honesty is deliberate and it is all over the app. Privacy Radar is an awareness tool, not a security device. If you believe you are in danger or being unlawfully monitored, contact the Gardaí or your local police rather than relying on any app.
Known / likely smart glasses — the signal matches a signature the app recognises well. Worth a look around.
Possible wearable — some characteristics match, but the signal is ambiguous. Weigh it with your own eyes.
Unknown — a Bluetooth device the app cannot name. Most rooms contain several; on its own this is not suspicious.
Common device — recognised as an everyday product such as headphones or a speaker.
How closely the heard signal matches a known signature — nothing more. A high number means a strong pattern match, not a confirmed device and not proof of recording.
Modern devices deliberately randomise their Bluetooth identifiers to protect their own users from being tracked. That is good privacy practice by those manufacturers, and it also means no app can honestly name every signal it hears. Any app that claims to is guessing.
A summary of what was found and how thoroughly you checked — running the optical check and working through the room checklist raises it. It is an awareness measure, not a scientific security rating, and the app says so where it shows it.
iOS asks once, the first time you scan. If it was declined, go to iPhone Settings → Apps → Privacy Radar and switch Bluetooth on. Scanning is receive-only: the app listens for public broadcasts and never connects to or pairs with anything.
Quick Scan listens for about ten seconds — enough for a first look at a room. Standard listens for thirty, which catches devices that broadcast less often. If a result seems odd, run the longer scan before drawing any conclusion.
It looks for small, bright, high-contrast highlights in the live camera feed — the kind of point reflection a lens or an infrared window can produce. Lights, glass edges, metal and screens produce them too, which is why it reports possible optical indicators and never "camera found". The torch button helps: sweep slowly and look for pinpricks that hold their position on an object while you move.
Demo mode, in Settings, replaces the real scanner with simulated devices so you can explore the app without waiting for real signals. Demo results are labelled in the app, and they are kept out of your history unless you explicitly switch "Include demo scans in history" on.
Nowhere. Everything stays on the phone — there is no account and no server. The details are in the privacy policy, which is short and in plain English.
Settings → Clear all data removes history, privacy scans, locations and checklist progress from the phone. Deleting the app does the same, because the phone is the only place any of it exists.