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For a privacy-conscious SmartThings setup, review four areas first: Permissions, Get your location from this phone, Linked services, and the in-app Privacy Notice. For alerts, configure both SmartThings’ device-notification choices and your phone’s system notification permission. Those are separate controls, so changing one does not automatically change the other.
Start with the right settings layer
SmartThings settings are split across the SmartThings app, your phone’s operating system, and each connected device or service. Samsung’s app guidance covers SmartThings itself; it does not replace the settings for an individual appliance, camera, hub, voice assistant, or third-party service.
Open SmartThings and go to Menu → Settings. The exact labels and screen order can differ by app release, phone software, and region. Use the wording shown on your device rather than looking for an identically named button from another phone or country.
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|---|---|---|
| SmartThings permissions | Whether the app can use phone capabilities needed by its features | Remove access that is not required for the automations and devices you use |
| SmartThings location option | Whether SmartThings gets your phone’s location for automations and household presence | Turn it off when location-based behavior or home-status visibility is not wanted |
| SmartThings device notifications | Which registered devices are allowed to generate SmartThings alerts | Keep useful device events while excluding noisy devices |
| Phone notification permission | Whether the operating system can display SmartThings notifications | Use it to silence or restore SmartThings alerts at the phone level |
| SmartThings Messages and activity | Categories shown inside the app’s activity feed, organized by location | Hide categories you do not want in the in-app feed without changing every phone alert |
| Device or linked-service settings | Notifications, data use, and access controlled by a specific device maker or connected account | Review these separately; SmartThings’ general settings do not cover them all |
Privacy settings worth reviewing
1. Audit SmartThings permissions
In Menu → Settings → Permissions, inspect every permission SmartThings currently has. Permissions let the app use phone capabilities that support its features. Keep access required for a feature you actively use, and revoke access that has no clear purpose in your household.
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Do not treat every permission as harmless to disable. A permission may be necessary for a particular automation, discovery workflow, or device function. After changing one, test the feature that matters to you. If an automation stops working, restore only the permission it actually needs rather than re-enabling everything.
- Write down the automations and device features you rely on before making changes.
- Change one permission at a time so a failure has an identifiable cause.
- Test both a normal action and the relevant automation trigger.
- Leave a permission enabled when SmartThings clearly requires it for a chosen feature.
2. Decide whether SmartThings should use this phone’s location
SmartThings’ Get your location from this phone option uses the phone’s location information to determine the location for automations. Samsung also says it can show other members whether you are at home. That creates a direct trade-off:
| If enabled | If disabled |
|---|---|
| Location-based automations can use this phone’s location. | Automations that depend on this phone’s location may no longer behave as intended. |
| Other members can be shown whether you are at home, as described by Samsung’s US settings guide. | That phone will not provide this location-based home-status signal. |
To change it, open Menu → Settings and find the phone-location option. Disable it when you do not want SmartThings using the phone’s location for those behaviors. Before doing so, identify any “arrive,” “leave,” or presence automation that depends on you; those are the first functions to test afterward.
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Open Menu → Settings → Linked services and review the accounts connected to SmartThings. Remove links for services the household no longer uses, old accounts, or integrations that were created for a temporary setup.
SmartThings’ settings screen identifies where connected accounts are managed, but it does not enumerate every data flow for every service. After unlinking an account, read that service’s own current privacy information if you need to know what it retained, how it handles authorization, or whether a separate deletion request is required. Unlinking in SmartThings should not be assumed to erase the other service’s account or historical data.
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4. Open the Privacy Notice instead of guessing what it says
The current Privacy Notice is accessible from SmartThings settings. Open it and read the version presented for your account and region. The settings page establishes access to the notice; it does not, by itself, establish specific collection, retention, or sharing terms. Those details can change, so rely on the notice currently displayed rather than an old summary.
For a household review, note which account is covered, what choices are available, and whether linked services have their own notices. Save a copy or record the date if you are documenting a workplace or family privacy decision.
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Leave SmartThings is not an ordinary privacy toggle. Samsung’s US support guide states that it erases all SmartThings data and the SmartThings service from the Samsung account. The cited guidance does not specify retention timing, what a linked service deletes, or how recovery works.
Before selecting it, review the current notice and consequences, identify automations and household members that depend on the account, and decide how devices will be managed afterward. Use this option only when you intend to remove the SmartThings service from that Samsung account, not merely to quiet notifications or reduce one permission.
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Choose device notifications inside SmartThings
SmartThings lets you choose which devices can send status or usage notifications, or enable notifications for all devices. In Menu → Settings, open the notification area and select the devices and events that are genuinely useful.
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A selective setup is usually more practical than a blanket off switch. Keep alerts for events where delay has a consequence—such as a safety sensor, a door status you monitor, or a device whose failure needs attention. Exclude routine status changes from devices that report frequently. If SmartThings presents an “all devices” choice, use it only when you truly want every registered device to generate alerts.
- Start with the smallest set of devices needed for safety, access, or essential operations.
- Disable high-volume status updates that do not require immediate action.
- Trigger a test event after saving so you know which device and message type you selected.
- Review the list after adding a new device; new registrations may have their own notification choices.
Control SmartThings at the phone level
Your phone’s operating system has a separate SmartThings notification permission. Samsung distinguishes traditional notifications shown in the phone’s Notification panel from activity notifications and messages viewed inside SmartThings.
On a Galaxy phone, open the phone’s Settings, find Notifications, select the app-notification list, and choose SmartThings. The exact path and labels can vary with phone software. On another Android phone, use the system Settings search for “SmartThings notifications” if the app list is organized differently. If the operating system blocks SmartThings, no in-app device preference can make a banner, sound, or lock-screen alert appear.
| Goal | Change inside SmartThings | Change in phone settings |
|---|---|---|
| Stop alerts from one or more devices | Adjust device notification preferences | Leave SmartThings permission enabled so selected alerts can still arrive |
| Silence every SmartThings phone alert | Optional: keep device choices for later | Disable or limit SmartThings notifications in the operating system |
| Restore alerts after silence | Confirm the device is selected | Re-enable SmartThings notifications and any desired sound, banner, or lock-screen categories |
| Read activity without push alerts | Use the in-app Messages and activity view | Restrict phone notifications while leaving the app available |
Hide or unhide categories in Messages
For activity that appears inside SmartThings rather than as a conventional phone alert, open Messages. Select a location if SmartThings asks you to, then open More options and choose the controls for hiding or unhiding message categories.
The activity view covers the past couple of days, according to Samsung’s guidance. Hiding a category changes what is shown in that in-app view; it should not be treated as equivalent to revoking a device’s notification permission or disabling the phone’s SmartThings notifications.
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- Open SmartThings → Menu → Settings.
- Review Permissions and remove access that is not needed by a feature you use.
- Decide whether Get your location from this phone is worth location-based automations and home-status visibility to other members.
- Open Linked services and unlink accounts that are obsolete or no longer trusted.
- Open the current Privacy Notice and check the terms for your region and account.
- Set device notifications to a short list of actionable devices instead of enabling every status update by default.
- Check the phone’s SmartThings notification permission and choose whether banners, sounds, lock-screen entries, or other categories should appear.
- Review Messages by location and hide categories that create noise but keep the in-app activity record useful.
- Trigger one test event for each alert you depend on.
What to check when a SmartThings alert does not arrive
Work through the layers in order; changing only one setting can hide the real cause.
- Check the phone’s data connection. Confirm the phone can reach the internet over its current Wi-Fi or mobile connection.
- Check the device connection. Verify that the device can reach its Wi-Fi access point or hub and is shown as connected in SmartThings.
- Check the device notification choice. In SmartThings settings, confirm that the device and relevant notification type are enabled.
- Check the phone’s app permission. In the operating system’s notification settings, make sure SmartThings is allowed to notify and that the desired notification categories are not silenced.
- Check activity messages. Open Messages, select the correct location, and make sure the category has not been hidden.
- Retest with a known event. Use an event that normally produces a notification, then note whether it appears in the app, in the phone’s notification panel, or in neither place.
Samsung’s Hong Kong support page, updated February 5, 2026, states that notifications are not provided for devices connected by Bluetooth. That is regional guidance for Hong Kong products, not a universal rule for every SmartThings device or market. If your device is Bluetooth-connected, check its local Samsung support page and manual before treating the missing alert as a permissions problem.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How to interpret common symptoms
The alert appears in SmartThings but not on the phone
The device preference is probably active, while the phone’s SmartThings notification permission, category, sound, or visual setting is blocking the presentation. Check the operating-system notification controls rather than repeatedly changing the device setting.
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No event appears anywhere
Check connectivity first, then the device’s SmartThings notification choice. If the event is an activity message, verify the selected location and hidden-category settings. A disconnected device cannot reliably generate a current status alert.
Too many alerts arrive
Reduce the device list or event types inside SmartThings. If the volume is acceptable in the app but not on the phone, use the operating system’s notification categories or silence options instead of disabling every SmartThings device notification.
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An automation stopped after a privacy change
Review the permission or location option you changed and test the automation’s trigger. Restore only the access required for that automation. If the menu or behavior does not match the instructions, Samsung’s Australian guidance advises checking current local support because phone and software versions can change the available controls.
When to use the most restrictive option
Disable location use when the convenience of presence-based automations is less important than avoiding that location signal and household home-status visibility. Remove a linked service when the account is no longer needed or should no longer be connected. Silence phone notifications when you still want SmartThings records available in the app but do not want interruptions.
Choose Leave SmartThings only when you intend to erase SmartThings data and the service from the Samsung account. It is disproportionate for ordinary notification cleanup and should follow a review of dependencies and the current notice.
Key decisions at a glance
| Question | Recommended decision | Trade-off |
|---|---|---|
| Do you use arrival or departure automations? | Keep phone location available if those automations depend on it | SmartThings uses location and may show members whether you are home |
| Do you need every device update? | Select only devices and events that require action | You may miss a low-priority status change you chose not to alert on |
| Do you want a quiet phone but an activity record? | Limit phone notifications and use Messages in SmartThings | You must open the app to see information that is no longer pushed |
| Is an account integration obsolete? | Remove it from Linked services and review that service’s own privacy terms | Automations using the integration may stop |
| Are you leaving the platform entirely? | Review consequences before using Leave SmartThings | Samsung says SmartThings data and service are erased from the Samsung account |
SmartThings privacy and notification tuning works best as a layered audit: limit permissions and location use to features you actually need, remove stale linked accounts, select actionable device alerts, and then verify the phone’s own notification permission. Keep the app-level, phone-level, and device-level controls distinct so a privacy change does not accidentally disable an alert you depend on.
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