Stalkerware

Stalkerware is a software application that allows someone to secretly monitor another person's smartphone or other device.

It can be used to track a person's location, read their messages, view their photos, and even listen to their calls.

Stalkerware is often used by abusers to monitor their victims, but it can also be used by stalkers, employers, or even jealous friends or family members.

Stalkerware, also known as spouseware, constitutes a category of commercial software specifically engineered to monitor the activities of the device user where it's installed.

Unlike Trojan spyware, stalkerware operates openly as developers openly market it as ostensibly helpful applications, such as parental control tools.

Typically, installing stalkerware necessitates physical access to the target device by the attacker.

However, stalkerware distinguishes itself from legitimate applications through its covert nature.

These programs operate stealthily, refraining from displaying user notifications and often concealing their presence on the device by hiding icons from lists of installed apps.

Some even mimic system applications, leading to their classification as riskware—potentially harmful software.

In terms of functionality, stalkerware varies in capabilities across different applications, but generally, they can perform tasks such as viewing photos, videos, and other files on the device, monitoring keyboard inputs, capturing screenshots, recording video and audio, reading messages from instant messaging and social media apps, tracking device location, intercepting SMS messages, tapping phone conversations, and transferring collected information to a remote server.

While some stalkerware-type apps can autonomously gain extensive privileges on the device, others may require manual permissions from the user.

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Reference: Kaspersky