FollowSince all of the previous posts are about tracking phones using GPS, for today’s post we would like to explain on the methods in tracking GSM phones. First of all, what is a GSM? GSM stands for Global System for Mobile Communications.
It was a standard developed by the Europeans and it became the de facto global standard for mobile communications. One of the key features of GSM is the application of the SIM card. SIM stands for Subscriber Identity Module. It is a smart card that is attached inside your phone. The SIM acts a unique identity card for the user of the phone where it contains the user’s personal information and its subscription number to the network.
So, in terms of tracking a GSM phone, the SIM card plays a key role here. This is due to the fact that your phone will always be communicating with a nearby cell tower. And through that communication, the information inside your SIM is used as a means of communication. The data that is being transmitted to nearby cell tower will consists of your MNC or Mobile Network Code and also your phone’s manufacturer data such as the IMEI and also ICCID number. The tracking of your phone by the network tower is done through geo-location technique.
So by using the information provided by this radio network tower, you can actually determine the phone cell coordinate data from public portal such as the Google Maps. This is due to the fact that many smartphones are now using the Google Maps Mobile. Through this app, Google has been able to store billions of data from user’s smartphones across the world. Among information that was shared is the Mobile Network Code (MNC), Location Area Code (LAC) and also Cell ID. By using this data into Google Map, you will be able to track the phone to the nearest cell tower that is picking up this data. There are now many websites that offers this services that links it with Google Map.