I've been with my boyfriend for two years, and I've noticed some strange activity on his Galaxy Z Flip phone. There are random posts on his social media that he definitely didn't make, like a comment on a dating group post by an older man—something I'd bet my boyfriend wouldn't do. Also, he's had issues where apps on his phone randomly close or revert to the previous screen. His phone battery drains quickly, which we thought was due to gaming, but I've read that could point to some kind of mirroring. I'm really concerned that someone might be controlling his phone or spying on him. How can we confirm if his phone has been mirrored, and what steps can we take to fix this? Should he consider getting a new phone entirely?
5 Answers
It sounds like your boyfriend's issues might not be a sign of his phone being hacked, but rather compromised accounts. First, he should change all his passwords and enable two-factor authentication (2FA) wherever possible. Also, check for active sessions on his accounts and log out from any devices that aren’t recognized.
It's a bit odd to think that if someone was truly hacking his phone, they'd just sporadically send a few messages instead of using it more aggressively. Have you both considered looking deeper into the timestamps and perhaps even discussing it openly with him about what he's seen?
Yeah, I've found messages he hasn't noticed, and I know the times he was definitely busy or offline. So it’s definitely something I can’t ignore.
If you suspect something fishy is going on, a factory reset might be a good way to wipe everything clean. After that, he can reset his account passwords and maybe create new accounts if he's still feeling uneasy about the old ones.
Honestly, it sounds more like an account issue than a phone hack. I'd recommend changing the passwords for all social media and email accounts right away and enabling 2FA wherever possible. That should help tighten security without needing to go further.
Make sure he logs into his Google and Samsung accounts from a secure computer first to check for unusual activity. Back up his important data either to a computer or the cloud. If things are still weird, factory resetting the phone could help. After that, he should use unique passwords and consider a password manager to handle them securely.
I totally get that it's concerning, but it’s good to rule out the basics first. If everything seems fine hardware-wise, then the accounts might be the real culprit. Changing passwords urgently is key.