Many apps that ask for your location do more than use it. Some pass it on to companies called location data brokers, who package it and sell it to others. US regulators and journalists have documented this for years. You can limit it by choosing which apps get your location, by checking what each app does with it, and by using apps that cannot read it in the first place.
What is a location data broker?
A location data broker is a company that collects or buys location data from phone apps and sells access to it. The data usually comes from small pieces of code, called SDKs, that app makers add to their apps. You, the user, often see none of this.
The broker then sells the data, or products built from it, to advertisers, analysts, researchers and sometimes government agencies. It is often described as "anonymous" because it is tied to a device's advertising ID rather than your name. That label deserves some scepticism, as the next section shows.
What reporters found
In December 2018 the New York Times published an investigation, Your Apps Know Where You Were Last Night, and They're Not Keeping It Secret. It reported that at least 75 companies were receiving precise location data from apps, often from people who had turned on location services to get things like weather or local news. The reporters also found that people could be identified in data that was labelled anonymous.
What the FTC has found
The US Federal Trade Commission has taken action against several location data brokers. These are allegations in legal complaints and settlements, not general rules about every company, but they show what can happen.
X-Mode Social and Outlogic (2024)
In January 2024 the FTC announced an order against data broker X-Mode Social and its successor Outlogic. The FTC alleged that the company sold precise location data tied to advertising IDs, that it was not anonymized, and that it did not have policies until May 2023 to remove sensitive places such as medical and reproductive health clinics, places of worship and domestic abuse shelters from what it sold. It also alleged that the company failed to ensure users of its own apps and of other apps with its code were fully informed about how their location data would be used.
The order bars X-Mode and Outlogic from sharing or selling sensitive location data and requires them to delete data they collected earlier, unless consent is obtained or the data is deidentified. The FTC made the order final in April 2024.
Gravy Analytics and Venntel (2024 to 2025)
In December 2024 the FTC announced action against Gravy Analytics and its subsidiary Venntel. It alleged that they sold sensitive location data, including visits to health-related places and places of worship, and collected it without verifiable consent from users. The companies said they processed more than 17 billion signals a day from about a billion mobile devices. The FTC finalized the order in January 2025, with narrow exceptions for national security and law enforcement.
Kochava (2026)
In May 2026 the FTC announced a proposed settlement with Kochava and its subsidiary Collective Data Solutions. It alleged that Kochava sold location data from hundreds of millions of mobile devices that could be used to trace individuals' movements. The proposed order would bar the sale of sensitive location data without affirmative express consent. At the time of writing it takes legal force only once the court approves and signs it.
Why it matters
Location data is not just a dot on a map. Where you go over time says a lot about you.
- Where you live and work. Your nights and days follow a pattern that points to home and workplace.
- Health. Visits to clinics, hospitals or specialist services reveal conditions you never chose to share.
- Beliefs and relationships. A regular visit to a place of worship, or to another person's home, tells a story.
- Your children. A family app that sells or leaks location also exposes where your kids go to school and play.
The FTC's own complaints focus on exactly these sensitive places: health clinics, places of worship and shelters. Once data is sold, you cannot take it back. You also usually cannot find out who bought it.
What you can do
You do not have to give up location services. A few habits help.
- Review which apps have location. In iPhone Settings, go to Privacy & Security › Location Services. Look at the list. Remove any app that does not need it.
- Choose the least permission that works. Many apps work fine with "While Using the App" or even "Never". Turn off Precise Location for apps that only need your general area, like weather.
- Ask how an app makes its money. If it is not obvious, and it wants your location, find out why. This is a question to ask, not proof of wrongdoing.
- Read the privacy policy for the words "sell", "share" and "partners". If a policy is vague about who receives location, treat that as a warning.
- Use apps that cannot read your location. With end-to-end encryption, a company that cannot read your location cannot sell it. See what end-to-end encrypted location sharing means.
What Orma does differently
Orma shares your location only with the people in your circle. Your location, history, places and alerts are encrypted on your iPhone with a key that only your circle's phones hold. Our servers store scrambled data they cannot read. We have no ads, no data selling and no tracking across other apps. We do not combine data with data from other companies. Our servers do see some account information, such as which circles you are in, and the privacy policy lists all of it.
If you want to share your location with family, the guide to sharing your location with family on iPhone covers your options.
FAQ
What is a location data broker?
A location data broker collects or buys location data from phone apps and sells access to it, usually to advertisers, analysts and sometimes governments. The data often comes from code that app makers add to their apps.
Is "anonymous" location data really anonymous?
Often not. Location data tied to an advertising ID can reveal where someone lives and works, which makes it easy to identify them. The FTC's action against X-Mode alleged that the location data it sold was not anonymized and could be tied to individual devices.
Does Orma sell my location?
No. Orma has no ads and no data selling. Your location is encrypted on your iPhone and our servers cannot read it.
Can I see which apps are using my location?
Yes. On iPhone, open Settings › Privacy & Security › Location Services. Each app is listed with the permission it has. You can change it there at any time.