How to find what app is turning on proximity sensor

[Ev7]

A few days ago, after using my S5 for a over a year with no problems, I noticed that my battery was going down faster than normal and that my TV remote (TIVO) was very unreliable when the phone was in the same room. That made me suspicious so I looked at my phone using my digital camera. I found that the proximity sensor was on bright even though no call was in progress. (The camera can see UV light.)

Once the light comes on when no call is in progress, it stays on until I reboot my phone. It stays on even when the screen is locked or off. The only way to turn off the proximity sensor light seems to be rebooting the phone.

How can I find out what app or other process is turning it on when no call is in progress?

Many thanks for any help.

 

[dontpanicbobby]

Try tapping on the phone icon, then menu, then scroll to call settings from there uncheck turn off screen during calls. That disables the proximity sensor.

Now use one of your most frequent apps then make a call. If the screen turns off while ypur listening that app probably turned it back on.

 

[Ev7]

Thanks. I'll try that. However when the sensor is off and I make a call it comes on for the duration of the call only. So that is working as it should. Never-the-less turning it off for diagnostic purposes is a good idea.

I do not know how Android works but, as a long time ago writer of operating systems, I would think that an app could not turn the light on directly but would have to ask the system to do it. Android should know what resources each app is using and could turn it off once all users of that resource have shut down, even if apps did not explicitly release it as they should. That does not seem to be happening.