Know if a tracker is following you.
Warns when an unknown Bluetooth tracker, such as an AirTag, seems to travel with you. Shadow listens for item trackers around you and tells you when the same one keeps showing up across time and places.
What Shadow does
It recognises the common item-tracker families and gives you a way to check, to find one, and to be warned in the background.
Scan now
A 90 second Bluetooth LE scan lists the trackers around you by type, signal strength and how often each was heard. Unknown devices that keep appearing are listed separately as low confidence.
Many tracker types
Recognises Apple Find My (AirTag and accessories), Samsung SmartTag, Tile, Chipolo and Google Find My Device trackers.
Hot/cold finder
Tap a tracker and follow a smoothed signal meter (cold, cool, warm, hot, very close) with a trend, to find it physically.
Background protection
Optional. A foreground service scans for 20 seconds every 3 minutes, so it also works with the screen off, and starts again after a reboot.
Smart warnings
You are warned when one tracker has been around for 30 minutes and was seen at two or more places at least 400 m apart. Without location permission it waits 2 hours instead.
Ignore your own
Keep a warnings history, mark your own trackers with "Ignore this tracker", and delete everything whenever you like.
How to use it
A couple of minutes to set up, then it stays quiet until it has something to say.
- Install and allow access. Allow Nearby devices (Bluetooth), Location and Notifications when asked.
- Tap Scan now to see which trackers are near you right now, and ignore the ones that are yours.
- Turn on background protection. Set Shadow to "Unrestricted" or "Don't optimize" in battery settings so Android does not stop it.
- If you get a warning, open it, use the hot/cold finder to locate the tracker, and read the Help screen for what a phone can and cannot detect.
Honest about the limits
A phone cannot see everything. Shadow is a helper, not a guarantee that no one is tracking you.
Detection depends on formats
Shadow only finds trackers whose Bluetooth advertisement formats it knows. Some formats are less certain than others, and new trackers may not be recognised.
Address rotation can delay alerts
AirTags and similar trackers change their address and key over time. A double change can split one tracker into two, which can delay a warning.
Battery savers and bags
Android battery limits can delay or stop background scans, and a tracker in a shielded bag may not be heard. The in-app Help screen explains these cases.
Permissions and privacy
Sightings and locations stay on your phone. No account, no analytics, no ads. The only network call is the update check in Settings.
| Nearby devices (Bluetooth) | To scan for tracker advertisements around you. |
|---|---|
| Location | To compare the places where a tracker was seen (400 m apart or more). Without it, Shadow waits 2 hours before warning. |
| Notifications | To show a warning, and the ongoing notice while background protection runs. |
| Foreground service and start at boot | To keep scanning with the screen off and to start protection again after a reboot. |
| Battery optimization exemption | Requested so Android does not stop background scans. You choose whether to allow it. |
| Internet | Only for the update check in Settings. |
Requirements and install
Requirements
- Android 8.0 (API 26) or newer
- A phone with Bluetooth LE
- Nearby devices, Location and Notifications allowed
Install
- Tap Download APK on your Android phone and open the file.
- If Android asks, allow your browser to install unknown apps.
- Or install Ash Store once and get updates from it.