What to Know

Siri isn't listening to your everyday conversations, but you can still turn off your microphone.
If you want to know how to turn off the microphone, you can do so in Siri's settings.
You can also disable microphone access on an app-by-app basis.

Have you ever wondered if your phone is listening to you? The truth is, yes, it's listening. However, it's not a nefarious iPhone-monitoring scheme; it's just so your iPhone can meet your needs more easily. Still, if you want to change your Siri and app settings to stop this from happening, we can help! Let's get started with learning to disable your iPhone microphone.

How to Turn Off Listen for "Hey Siri"

Does your phone listen to you? Think about any time you've zoned out of a conversation, but someone saying your name got your attention. Siri is designed in a similar way. Siri is technically constantly listening, but is "zoned out" and doesn't really register or transmit anything you say the phrase "Siri" or "Hey Siri." If you're worried that your iPhone is listening to you via Siri, here is how to turn off the microphone on your iPhone:

Open the Settings app, and tap Apple Intelligence & Siri. Note: if your iPhone is not Apple Intelligence-capable, this setting will just be called Siri and will likely be located a few rows lower than what you see in the screenshot.
Select Talk & Type to Siri. Note: if your iPhone is not Apple Intelligence-capable, this setting will just be called Talk to Siri.
Tap Off.

That's how to block the microphone on your iPhone and stop your iPhone from listening to conversations. It's important to note that once you turn off this setting, you'll no longer be able to activate Siri by saying "Hey Siri." Instead, you'll need to hold the side button for Siri if your iPhone doesn't have a Home button, or hold the Home button if your iPhone model has one.

How to Get Apps to Stop Listening with Your iPhone Microphone

Now you can find out which apps are using your iPhone's microphone to listen to you. Once you have this information, you can make more informed decisions about allowing this access. Here's how to stop your phone from listening to you by controlling which apps have access to your mic:

Open the Settings app, and tap Privacy & Security.
Tap Microphone.
You'll see a list of all apps to which you've granted Microphone access. Toggle off any apps you'd like to stop from using the mic.

That's how to stop your iPhone from listening to you. Keep in mind that these apps may combine microphone and speaker use. This means that if I turn off microphone access for YouTube, for example, the app will no longer play audio for my YouTube videos. Next, learn how to keep the wrong people from accessing your information with Emergency Reset and how to turn Apple Watch Always On Display off & on.

Suggestions to Improve iPhone Security

Concerned about iPhone privacy? The iPhone is already a very secure device, but there are always steps you can take to further protect your privacy. One option is to use a privacy-focused browser or use an app to block trackers, as described in our guide on How to Use a YouTube Ad Blocker on iPhone. To learn more about iPhone privacy settings, you can also check out our free Tip of the Day newsletter, which will also automatically sign you up for our weekly privacy and security-focused newsletter, Security Friday.

FAQ

What are the orange and green dots on the iPhone status bar? The colored dots that you sometimes see in your iPhone status bar indicate when an app has recently accessed the microphone, camera, or your location.
How do you stop your iPhone from accessing your location? If you don't want certain apps constantly checking your location, you can turn off the Significant Locations feature. Find out how to turn off Significant Location tracking.
Should you allow apps to access your photos? If you need to give an app access to your photos, we recommend granting it only access to specific photos. Find out how to customize which photos each app can access.
How do you stop apps from tracking you? Sometimes, when you open an app, you'll see a prompt asking for permission to track you. You should never allow an app to track you, and you can turn off app tracking altogether so that you're never asked. Find out how to opt out of app tracking.