Arizona GPS Tracking Laws: Is It Legal to Put a Tracker on a Car? (2026)

Arizona takes an unusual approach to GPS trackers. There is no statute that makes the act of sticking a tracker on someone's car a crime all by itself. Instead, Arizona folds GPS surveillance into its stalking law, A.R.S. 13-2923, which treats unauthorized electronic tracking as a "course of conduct" that can support a felony charge.

That structure matters in practice. Whether a hidden tracker in Arizona is a felony often turns on how long the device was used, how many times it was used, and what effect the tracking had on the person being followed.

This guide breaks down the statute in plain English, including who can legally track a vehicle and what to do if you find a device on your car. It is part of our GPS Tracking Laws by State series.

Is It Legal to Put a GPS Tracker on a Car in Arizona?

It depends on whose car it is and whether you have authorization. If you own the vehicle, or the person being tracked has agreed to it, you are on solid legal ground. If neither is true, the tracking can become felony stalking surprisingly fast.

Arizona's legislature never passed a dedicated tracking-device statute like the ones in Texas or California. What it did instead, in 2012, was amend the stalking law so that electronic and GPS surveillance counts as stalking conduct (Laws 2012, Ch. 359). So the legal question in Arizona is not "did you place a tracker" but "did you use a device to surveil a specific person without authorization, and did it meet the statute's thresholds."

That means a tracker placed on a stranger's, an ex's, or an estranged spouse's car is not automatically a crime at the moment of placement. But the moment the device is used to follow that person for 12 continuous hours, or on two separate occasions, the conduct fits squarely within the stalking statute.

Arizona's Stalking Statute and Its GPS Surveillance Prong (A.R.S. 13-2923)

Under A.R.S. 13-2923, a person commits stalking by intentionally or knowingly engaging in a course of conduct directed at another person that causes the victim to suffer emotional distress, to reasonably fear damage to property, or to reasonably fear physical injury or death.

The statute's definition of "course of conduct" includes a prong written specifically for tracking technology. It covers using "any electronic, digital or global positioning system device to surveil a specific person or a specific person's internet or wireless activity continuously for twelve hours or more or on two or more occasions over a period of time, however short, without authorization."

In other words, GPS tracking is one of the listed ways to commit stalking in Arizona. The same prong also reaches spyware that monitors someone's internet or wireless activity, not just hardware trackers on cars.

The 12-Hour and Two-Occasion Thresholds

Here is the honest nuance. The GPS prong only kicks in if the surveillance runs continuously for 12 hours or more, or happens on two or more occasions. A single, brief use of a tracker that never crosses either threshold arguably falls outside this prong of the statute.

In the real world, that gap is narrower than it looks. GPS trackers and AirTags report location continuously by design, so 12 hours accrues in half a day of the device sitting on a car. And checking the location twice, even minutes apart, can be argued as two occasions, since the statute says "over a period of time, however short."

Prosecutors also do not need the GPS prong at all if the tracking is part of a broader pattern. Following someone in person, showing up where they are, and sending threatening messages are all separate "course of conduct" categories under the same statute.

There is also a lesser charge with no threshold at all. A.R.S. 13-2921(A)(3) makes it harassment, a class 1 misdemeanor, to knowingly surveil or cause a person to surveil another person in a manner that harasses. Because that paragraph carries no twelve-hour or two-occasion requirement, it can reach short-duration tracking that the stalking statute's GPS prong does not.

Who Can Legally Track a Vehicle in Arizona

The statute itself tells you who is in the clear. Course of conduct "does not include constitutionally protected activity or other activity authorized by law, the other person, the other person's authorized representative or if the other person is a minor, the minor's parent or guardian."

In practical terms, tracking is lawful in Arizona when:

• You own the vehicle. Putting a tracker on your own car, including one you let someone else borrow, is tracking your own property. Joint ownership situations, such as a co-titled car during a divorce, are murkier, and a tracker can still feed a stalking charge if the tracked spouse suffers distress or fear.
• The person consents. A family member, friend, or driver who agrees to be tracked has authorized the surveillance.
• An authorized representative consents. For example, a guardian or agent acting for an incapacitated adult.
• A parent or guardian tracks their minor child. Arizona's statute expressly allows a minor's parent or guardian to authorize the surveillance, so tracking your teenager's phone or the car they drive is lawful.
• Law enforcement has a warrant. Under the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in United States v. Jones (2012), attaching a GPS device to a vehicle and using it to monitor the vehicle's movements is a Fourth Amendment search. Arizona codifies the procedure in A.R.S. 13-4293, which allows a tracking device search warrant only on probable cause supported by affidavit or oath and requires officers to serve notice on the person tracked within ninety days after the tracking ends.

Licensed private investigators get no special exemption from the stalking statute. A PI who tracks a person without the vehicle owner's authorization runs the same legal risks as anyone else.

Can My Employer Track My Car in Arizona?

Arizona has no statute restricting employer GPS tracking, and no employee-consent requirement like Connecticut's electronic monitoring law. That leaves the general rules.

If the vehicle belongs to the company, the employer can track it. The company owns the asset, and monitoring its own fleet is standard practice and clearly authorized.

Tracking an employee's personal vehicle is different. Without the employee's consent, an employer who tracks a personal car could cross into the stalking statute's GPS prong and face invasion of privacy claims. Most Arizona employers handle this by getting written consent in a vehicle or telematics policy. If you drive your own car for work, read what you signed.

AirTags and Item Trackers

Apple AirTags, Tiles, and similar Bluetooth trackers are covered by the same rule. The statute's language is technology-neutral: "any electronic, digital or global positioning system device." A 29 dollar AirTag in a wheel well counts the same as a hardwired GPS unit.

Dropping an AirTag into an ex-partner's bag or car and following their movements for 12 hours, or checking it on two occasions, is course-of-conduct stalking if it causes the required distress or fear. Apple and Google both push unknown-tracker alerts to nearby phones, which is how many Arizona victims discover these devices in the first place.

There is also a federal layer. Using a GPS device or any interactive computer service to stalk someone across state lines, or in a way that causes substantial emotional distress, can be charged under the federal stalking statute, 18 U.S.C. 2261A.

Penalties: Class 5 vs. Class 3 Felony

Stalking under A.R.S. 13-2923 is charged at one of two felony levels, depending on what the victim feared. First-offense, non-dangerous sentencing ranges come from A.R.S. 13-702.

A felony conviction in Arizona also carries fines of up to 150,000 dollars plus surcharges, loss of firearm rights, and a criminal record that survives long after any sentence ends.

Civil Lawsuits and Injunctions Against Harassment

Criminal charges are not the only recourse. Arizona courts recognize the privacy tort of intrusion upon seclusion, and secretly monitoring someone's movements through a hidden tracker is the kind of conduct that tort was built for. A victim can sue the person who placed the tracker for damages.

Faster relief usually comes through an injunction against harassment under A.R.S. 12-1809. Harassment there means a series of acts directed at a specific person that would cause a reasonable person to be seriously alarmed, annoyed, or harassed. Repeated GPS surveillance fits that definition.

Any person can petition a justice of the peace, magistrate, or superior court judge, often the same day. Once served, the injunction lasts one year and can bar the defendant from contacting you or coming near your home, workplace, or school. If the tracker comes from a current or former romantic partner or family member, an order of protection may be available instead. Our Arizona restraining order laws guide covers both tracks.

What to Do If You Find a Tracker on Your Car

If you discover a GPS device or AirTag on your vehicle in Arizona, resist the urge to smash it or toss it in a truck bed heading the other way. The device is evidence.

1. Photograph it in place before touching anything. Capture where on the vehicle it was hidden.
2. Call local police or the county sheriff and report it. Ask for a report number. The 12-hour and two-occasion thresholds are for prosecutors to sort out, not a reason to skip reporting.
3. Let officers remove and keep the device when possible. Chain of custody matters if charges follow.
4. If you suspect a specific person, ask the court for an injunction against harassment or an order of protection.
5. Document the pattern. If the person who tracked you keeps showing up where you are, write down each incident with dates. That pattern is exactly what the stalking statute punishes.

If you believe your phone is also being monitored, address that separately. Spyware on a phone implicates the same statute's internet and wireless surveillance language, and it may also violate Arizona's interception laws covered in our Arizona recording laws guide. For cameras pointed at your home rather than trackers on your car, see our surveillance camera laws coverage.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Laws change, and how they apply depends on the facts of your situation. If you are facing a tracking or stalking issue in Arizona, consult a licensed Arizona attorney, and if you are in immediate danger, call 911.

Sources

• A.R.S. 13-2923, Stalking; classification; exceptions; definitions - Arizona State Legislature
• A.R.S. 13-2921, Harassment - Arizona State Legislature
• A.R.S. 13-4293, Tracking device search warrant; issuance; grounds; requirements; notice - Arizona State Legislature
• A.R.S. 12-1809, Injunction against harassment - Arizona State Legislature
• A.R.S. 13-702, First time felony offenders; sentencing - Arizona State Legislature
• United States v. Jones, 565 U.S. 400 (2012) - Supreme Court of the United States
• 18 U.S.C. 2261A, Stalking - Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School
• Laws 2012, Chapter 359 (HB 2549), the act that added the GPS surveillance prong to A.R.S. 13-2923 - Arizona State Legislature

More Arizona Laws

• Arizona Dashcam Laws
• Arizona Data Privacy Laws
• Arizona Drone Laws
• Arizona Employee Monitoring Laws
• Arizona Recording Laws
• Arizona Restraining Order Laws

Frequently Asked Questions

Is it illegal to put a GPS tracker on someone's car in Arizona?

There is no Arizona statute that criminalizes the placement of the device by itself. But using the tracker to surveil that person for 12 continuous hours or more, or on two or more occasions, without authorization is course-of-conduct stalking under A.R.S. 13-2923, a felony if it causes the victim emotional distress or fear.

Can I put a GPS tracker on my spouse's car in Arizona?

Not safely, unless the car is solely yours or your spouse consents. Spouses get no exemption under A.R.S. 13-2923. Tracking a spouse's car during a separation or divorce is a common fact pattern in stalking charges and can also undermine your position in family court.

Can I track my teenager's car or phone in Arizona?

Yes. The stalking statute expressly excludes surveillance authorized by a minor's parent or guardian, so parents may lawfully track their minor children. Once the child turns 18, that authorization ends and the adult child's own consent is required.

Is a single short use of a tracker actually legal in Arizona?

Arguably, a one-time use that never reaches 12 continuous hours and is never repeated falls outside the GPS prong of the stalking statute. It is not necessarily lawful, though: A.R.S. 13-2921(A)(3) makes surveilling another person in a manner that harasses a class 1 misdemeanor, with no duration or occasion threshold. In practice trackers also report continuously, so the 12-hour threshold is crossed quickly, and prosecutors can rely on other conduct, such as following or contacting the person, to build a stalking charge.

Can my employer track the company truck I drive in Arizona?

Yes. Arizona has no statute limiting GPS tracking of employer-owned vehicles, and the company is monitoring its own property. Tracking your personal vehicle is different and should only happen with your written consent.

Do police need a warrant to put a GPS tracker on my car in Arizona?

In United States v. Jones, the U.S. Supreme Court held that attaching a GPS device to a vehicle and using it to monitor movements is a Fourth Amendment search; the Court did not decide whether such a search could be reasonable without a warrant. Arizona codifies a tracking device search warrant procedure in A.R.S. 13-4293, which allows such a warrant only on probable cause supported by affidavit or oath.

What should I do if I find an AirTag tracking me in Arizona?

Photograph the device where you found it, report it to police, and let officers take custody of it as evidence. If you know or suspect who placed it, you can petition for an injunction against harassment under A.R.S. 12-1809, which can issue quickly and lasts one year after service.

Can I sue someone for GPS tracking me in Arizona?

Yes. Arizona recognizes the tort of intrusion upon seclusion, and secret GPS surveillance of your movements can support a civil damages claim, separate from any criminal stalking prosecution.