What is spoofing in Pokemon GO?

When the Covid-19 pandemic entered the lives of Pokemon Go players back in March of 2020, Spoofing became more and more well known in the Pokémon Go world.

Spoofing is an act of tricking your mobile device's GPS into thinking it’s in another location in the world. There are multiple reasons why a Pokemon GO player would spoof. For instance, during quarantine, it was impossible to go anywhere to locate Pokestops or Gyms.

If a player lives in a rural part of the world, it could also be a challenge being able to get to Raids, Gyms or Pokestops, therefore halting any Field Research or Special Research.

Why and Why Not to Use Spoofing in Pokemon GO

Spoofing can benefit a player in many ways, such as by getting those elusive regional Pokémon such as Tauros, Mr. Mime, Kangaskhan, or Corsola. Being able to take over more Gyms while never leaving their house. Or having the ability to complete more Research tasks in a shorter amount of time.

However, Pokemon GO can find out a player's location by checking the IP address on their phone. The game can also look at the GPS coordinates of the phone and make sure they match up with where the IP address says they are. Pokemon GO can use this information to ban players from the game, but if the trainer is not caught, it will let them continue to play.

There are many trainers out there who frown upon spoofers. The fact that a more powerful Player with a strong Pokemon could take over a Gym in a rural area isn’t a necessarily friendly, or beneficial thing to do.

Lastly, spoofing doesn’t come free. It is done by using a VPN, or Virtual Private Network. There are third party apps that are used to achieve spoofing such as ExpressVPN and CyberGhost.