After updating to One UI 9 (Android 17), you may notice a small blue icon in the status bar. That icon is the new location indicator: it appears whenever an app accesses your device’s location.
Apps use location for many purposes — for example, a maps app needs it for directions and a weather app can show the forecast for your current area — so the indicator can appear even if you haven’t opened a navigation app.
How the location indicator reveals which app is using location
When the blue indicator appears, open the Quick Panel and tap the icon. Your phone will then show which app is accessing your location, so you don’t have to guess which app triggered the indicator.
If the app shown is one you are actively using, its access may be expected. If it’s an app you aren’t using, note that apps granted “allow all the time” location permission can access location in the background; you may have given that permission earlier and forgotten about it.
Change an app’s location permissions
To review or change an app’s location permissions, go to Settings > Location > App permissions and select the app. Depending on the app, you can allow access all the time, limit it to when the app is in use, have it ask each time, or block access entirely.
