If Bluetooth is turned on, is it ALWAYS "discoverable"? Dangers of hacking in public places?

[Dualmonitors]

If Bluetooth is turned on, is it ALWAYS "discoverable"? Dangers of hacking in public places?

i'm interested in using Smart Lock, and within Smart Lock is the option of adding a "Trusted Device". Trusted Device only has 2 options: bluetooth or NFC. for me, i only can find bluetooth devices that are turned on in my home (don't know of any NFC devices that are always turned on in my home).

ok, fine. i turned on my bluetooth on my S7 Edge, and linked it to my desktop PC's bluetooth via a code that was displayed on both my S7 Edge as well as my desktop PC's bluetooth interface.

so far so good.

i no longer have to use fingerprint to unlock my phone when i'm within bluetooth range of my home's desktop pc.

HOWEVER, when i looked into the Settings/Bluetooth on my S7 Edge, it implies that it is ALWAYS DISCOVERABLE by other devices!!! that seems to me to be very unsafe in crowded venues, i.e. a Starbucks, or anywhere where there are lots of people. it seems to be vulnerable to hacking!

my question is: does the S7 Edge's bluetooth always remain "discoverable" when bluetooth is turned on on the S7 Edge? i need this in order to use Smart Lock at home so i do not have to use fingerprint to unlock when i'm home.

btw, the reason why i have to resort to adding a bluetooth "Trusted Device" for Smart Lock is that i've always used Smart Lock with the gps location sensor by simply adding my home address to Smart Lock's location option. But, for some mysterious reason, that stopped working yesterday afternoon and no matter what i do, rebooting or turning Smart Lock off and on again (toggling it) would not make it work as it always had!

Any ideas please? thanks.

 

[pgood4]

Re: If Bluetooth is turned on, is it ALWAYS "discoverable"? Dangers of hacking in public places?

Only discoverable when you actually enter the bluetooth settings.

 

[Dualmonitors]

Re: If Bluetooth is turned on, is it ALWAYS "discoverable"? Dangers of hacking in public places?

Only discoverable when you actually enter the bluetooth settings.

so it's quite safe to leave bluetooth on all the time and use Smart Lock for adding a trusted location to leave phone unlocked?

 

[Adiliyo]

Re: If Bluetooth is turned on, is it ALWAYS "discoverable"? Dangers of hacking in public places?

correct, it will only be discoverable to unpaired devices when you are on the bluetooth settings page.

 

[recDNA]

Re: If Bluetooth is turned on, is it ALWAYS "discoverable"? Dangers of hacking in public places?

so it's quite safe to leave bluetooth on all the time and use Smart Lock for adding a trusted location to leave phone unlocked?

Just don't leave the phone there!