As you probably aren’t aware, your cell phone can be used to locate you whenever the phone is turned on, even if you aren’t on a call, and even if you think you have the GPS function disabled. The government has long taken advantage of this ability, tracking people even without probable cause.
To make it more palatable, several wireless carriers are now offering this functionality as a service to parents to track their children.
And of course, some parents are eating it up. Surprisingly, so are the kids. Wichita, Kan., resident James Davis subscribes to a Sprint service to monitor his 14 year old stepdaughter.
“It’s kind of expensive to do but peace of mind because I can know where she is,” Davis said. “You’re never too old to get kidnapped. My kids, they’d probably bring them back. But just in case. … As long as my daughter has her cell phone on her, for a fee, I can know exactly where she’s at. . . .
“When you’re 14, you don’t have the right to complete privacy,” said Davis, who also monitors his stepdaughter’s e-mail and cell phone usage. . . .
Lynn, Maggie and Kurt Rich – 14, 11 and 10, respectively – think such devices are “cool.”
John Rich said he wasn’t surprised his children thought monitoring tools were a good idea.
“They’re not troublemakers,” he said. — Wichita Eagle
Let’s take a look at some of these services.
Disney Mobile’s Family Locator service is the most basic. It allows parents to determine the location of their children in real time.
The Chaperone Service from Verizon Wireless allows parents to monitor their children’s locations in real time as well as be notified if their children leave predefined “zones” of where they’re expected to be. Verizon notifies the child’s phone by text message if their parents look up their location.
Teen Arrive Alive, provided through Nextel, allows parents to track their children in real time as well as determine the direction and speed they’re traveling. They also provide “Am I driving safely?” decals for the back of teenagers’ cars.
It may well be a good thing for many parents to be able to locate their children, especially in an emergency. But I’m afraid that this technology is making children accustomed to being tracked at all times, and therefore the next generation will grow up without an appreciation for privacy, and with a quiet acquiescence to the coming surveillance state.
Homeland Stupidity maintains an affiliate relationship with T-Mobile, which to the best of our knowledge does not offer a child tracking service.
(5 votes, average: 1.80 out of 5)
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Karl Marx would love the popular moves among politicians in various state governments and the federal government to ban so-called "junk" food in schools, and to "put healthy food in" convenience stores and on the tables of those they define as poor. It's a very elitist and arrogant mindset that promotes this ideology, and it needs to be addressed.
Ultimately, the war supporters in Congress prevailed in the vote on the resolution. Still, the vote was significant because it places every member of Congress on the record as supporting or not supporting the unconstitutional, costly, violent occupation of a country that never attacked us. This vote should serve as an important reminder to the American people of where their representatives really stand when it comes to policing the world, empire building, and war.
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Jason Finkelstein
Jan 04, 2007
Hi Michael,
You didn’t mention the name of the Sprint service. It’s called Sprint Family Locator.
And, to your italicized point at the bottom, neither T-Mobile nor Cingular (GSM carriers) offer location services at this point.
Cheers,
Jason
BelchSpeak
Jan 04, 2007
Mike,
Don’t forget. No one makes anyone carry a cellphone. Don’t wanna be tracked? Fine. Don’t get a cellphone.
Jason Finkelstein
Jan 04, 2007
or, just turn the phone off! no mobile phone can be located if it is not connected to the network.
V
Jan 04, 2007
Phone companies have a process by which they will allow the police to use GPS tracking with the owner’s consent in an emergency. It’s used for runaways. If a kidnapper isn’t dumb enough to shut the cell phone off and get rid of it, it will work to find them as well.
These services are unnecessary and serve only as intrusive ways for paranoid parents to monitor their children without having to call and ask “where are you?”
forstand
Jan 04, 2007
Michael,
In this case I believe that your generalization went too far. You do make a valid point but let’s face it, kids are smart. When they want their privacy to lose their virginity they will do so. A Faraday cage is the obvious solution. Pulling the battery is another and far simpler.
Kids will never accept a loss of privacy. They will work around it, much like my step-daughter attempted and/or succeeded at. Unfortunately for her I am smarter or at least I think I am; but she had help.
Dignon
Jan 12, 2007
To BelchSpeak, having a cel phone is a near necessity in today’s world, so opting out of having a cel phone is not a realistic option. A much wiser solution is for the manufacturers and carriers to allow users to simply turn of GPS tracking.
To Jason Finkelstein, actually, it has recently be revealed that the FBI has the ability to remotely listen in on any cel phone in the USA – even if it is turned off. It is reasonable to assume that if they have that capability, certainly they can also read information from the GPS in the phone as well.
These issues were recently discussed in some detail on the PublicPrivacy podcast (http://www.publicprivacy.ca). It was the December 2006 episode, I believe… You might want to take a listen, very interesting stuff!
Jan 13, 2007
links for 2007-01-13 | .get privacy
Kevin Fields
Jan 14, 2007
I disagree with Dignon, having a ceelphone is not a “near necessity”, it’s a “near narcissity”. Too many people think that they are so important that they have to have a means for the world to contact them 24/7.
I have worked in the tech industry for many years. One of the first things I let my clients know is that I do NOT carry a cellphone on me. Although I am home most of the time, and I’m available at home most of the time, at the times I am not home, it is because I’m doing something that doesn’t make myself available to them. In those times they will have to rely on others who I have entrusted to take care of their needs, or if they insist on only dealing with me, they will have to wait.
I’ve never had one person complain about this at all. Only once have I ever had a regular cellphone, a brief relationship that I quickly ended due to the provider mis-stating the terms of the contract. I’ve used pre-paid phones off and on over the years, but I’ve not used one now for almost three years. I still keep that phone in my van for dialing 911, which I use a couple of times a year at most.
I understand Michael’s point completely, but I think he under-estimates the cleverness of children. Parents who think that they finally have the one-up on their mischevious children eluding them are just being deluded into paying for a service that their mischevious children will disable. This shouldn’t be seen as a substitute for talking with your children and knowing where they are all the time, but another tool used for “peace of mind” at best.
Jerry Clare
Jan 22, 2007
Listen. last Friday , My 13 year old son got mad at me and just left the house – after 5 hours we finally got him safely home. He would not answer his phone calls from me – we finally tracked him down thru 15 of his friends. Without the friends phone numbers – we would have had to call the police – in NYS if you are under 16 – you are asking for family trouble and lawyer fees upwards of $37,000. My sons verizon phone comes up for renewal in 6 months – I want the piece of mind of tracking him until he reaches the age of 18. Hopefully none of you will have to go thru the nightmare we just went thru.
Michael Hampton
Jan 23, 2007
Of course.
The benefits of this sort of tracking are easy to understand and appreciate, especially if something happens to one of your children.
It’s the drawbacks that are rarely explored.
But like anything else, I feel the parent should make this choice after being fully informed of both sides.
Jack
Jan 23, 2007
If you carry a “TAP & GO” or “PAY PASS” or other various named cards that don’t need swiped to use without foil around it you are already transmitting. Not only are you in danger of having your identity stolen by thieves they as well as others could be tracking you.
Don’t fool yourself thinking that the same folks that can fake the front of an ATM can’t aslo decode the signals sent out by these cards and steal the info as you pass them in a mall and more.
My parents tracked us with their eyes and had no need for devices because we also didn’t run amuck unsupervised.
Retz
Jan 29, 2007
There are valid points pro and con for “tracking” anyone. Safety always seeming to head the list. It’s not “give me liberty or give me safety”, but rather, “Give me liberty, or give me death”. What with all the legislation for just about anything you do these days, no one really has liberty any longer. Most people are knowingly sacrificing liberty for “safety”. And in doing so, are unwittingly raising a generation of humans who will not only accept, but will embrace this “safety” measure as a sort of guarantee that they will come to no harm using it. And if you stop and think about it…is anyone ever really “safe”? Not by a long shot.
Why is the American public standing idly by, as our “freedom, with liberty and justice for all…” is being “traded” for “homeland security”? Why do we embrace these lies, and give up the most basic premise upon which this country was founded? People, our ancestors, died so that we could be free! No one seems to remember that.
To even entertain the idea that “tracking” anyone is a positive, and/or safe action, is only kidding themselves. It is an infringement on privacy, under 18 yrs. or not. How do we teach our youngsters to respect and extend privacy, if they never experience it?
Huh?
Feb 07, 2007
ok.. sooo.. what’s the downside? This article just gushes over tracking children. Why don’t you trust your children in the first place? Did you not raise them well?
Michael Hampton
Feb 07, 2007
I made the downside perfectly clear — to anyone who reads, instead of skims, the article.
Ed
Feb 11, 2007
I’m not too worried about the Government tracking my cell phone currently. If I was a criminal or terrorist my cell phone of choose would be the Tracfone or similar. Let see I can go to Wal-Mart pay cash and buy a prepaid nationwide prepaid card by cash and nobody knows who or where I am. If I think my number has been compromised I throw away the phone and buy a new one again all by cash. If I’m paranoid then I just throw away the phone once a month and buy a new one every month by cash. They only cost about $20 dollars. Nobody will ever know who I am until the government closes that loophole. As far as I know the smart kid could do the same.
Anonymous
Apr 12, 2007
Better duck now, the blakc helicopters are swarming.
These are perfect inventions for parents with extremely over active or misguided children. As an example, my three year old holds no fear of anything, or anyone. At at large public places, mall, exhibition centers, theme parks, he can be gone in an instant. Having the ability to locate him quickly would be a godsend.
Sure there is no substitute for good parenting, but then again, Jeffrey Dalmer is a new phenom too, shouldn’t the tools be available to the public if desired.
By your logic, we call can walk, so why do we need cars?
Dave
May 07, 2007
for every security measure, there is a counter-measure. The kid will ‘forget’ to turn on the phone, or loan it to a friend goin to the library, or strap it to a dog and send U on a wild ride… The kid will have another cell for HIS/HER use IF he/she is up to no good. CHances are he/she is NOT doing bad things, in which case you are wasting a lot of money that you could be spending more wisely on your kid’s future.
If you are worried about kidnapping, move, or smarten up about being a target… A cell phone is not going to save them from harm and ‘real’ kidnappers know all about this stuff.
Amy
Jun 10, 2007
WOW!! The only comment I have about this, is the response from Huh?…one of the only people to not use a name of course….
They wrote: Why don’t you trust your children in the first place? Did you not raise them well?…The word stupidity was perfect on this page, with this kind of response…..I agree that good and attentive parenting is part of the solution, but are you kidding me? Are there people truly dumb enough that they think this is the cause of some of the horrific events that take place?!? People are getting scarier and scarier as each day passes…If you would actually read the headlines out there, you would realize that most of the people doing these things, are the same people that most good parents are teaching their children to trust. Examples…family members, teachers, police force, church members…www.101reasons.org…Im not giving the link for homeschooling purposes…just for you to see real articles…it might just make you rethink some things…Even the best parent in the world isnt immune to the crazies of our lifetime.
John
Sep 12, 2007
Hi Amy, thanks for your response. It is amazing how most people in their responses are talking about parenting and how kids can get around it and that’s the only thing they mentioned.
I trust my kid but I don’t trust the rest of the world. My kid is at a vulnerable age (11). It is easy for him to get to his friends on a bike a couple of blocks away. So because I trust him and I have raised him well, at least I think I have, I let him go there. When he gets there he calls. But, as I have said, what I don’t trust is other people. So how long do I wait for him to call? Do I wait 10-15 minutes in case he just for forgot or got involved in something as soon as he got there? How far can a car get in 15 minutes? He could be way across town and I would never find him. Because I have raised him right, I shouldn’t worry about others, right? At least that’s what you guys are saying. Maybe none of you saw that episode on Oprah where they had all these people who had “raised their kids right” and then they had the “bad guys” come and easily lure the kids to their cars.
Because I have raised my kid right, I would feel comfortable explaining to him what the device is for and how I would use it. No, right now he doesn’t have a device. I’m doing research and came across this. It is amazing to me the people who don’t think that anything will ever happen; the people who don’t read/watch the news as Amy mentioned; and the people who believe that if they don’t think about it, it will not happen to them.
brian
Sep 19, 2007
my daughter just got her phone stolen, is there a website I can go to to track stolen phone and find it. I would love to see the expression on their face when I show up.
Natalie
Sep 26, 2007
Michael,
When perverts start keeping their hands off our children, THEN we can all have some privacy back.
I actually don’t need to track my teen, I trust him…
it’s my 9 & 6 yr old kids that I would like to be able to track if they go missing.
lucy
Oct 12, 2007
i swer the police cant trak u down if you switch of the fone and take the batery out…am i right or wrong ??
King
Dec 17, 2007
If tracking children was illegal, I would be in jail. No law is against it. I have nothing to hide should the law enforcement unveil my location or listen to my phone conversations. This does not bring chills to my spine, my inability to find my child should he/she disappear, does. That, and the children that were kidnapped, raped and murdered, started me on my way to helping parents prevent crimes on their own terms. I am the Invinc-A-Kid, , featured on Dr. Phil Jan-08. Parents, what you give up as your privacy is laughable compared to the piece of mind you gain from having the ability to track. Yes, predator can find and toss it… How far? Only far enough to give police an exact search location, vs. the whole world. Time is of essence, you will have a 90% better chance with GPS than without. Remember, of all children that were kidnapped AND killed, 68% were killed in the first 3 hours! You simply don’t have time to call police to track a cellphone or pings! By the time they obtain a formal search warrant or a court order, it may and will be too late for most victims of abduction regardless of their age. My vision? A predator that is afraid of me as a parent, afraid of the law becasue it’s too tough (death penalty), and afraid of street-savvy children that will turn them in! Break the life-long chains! Make him scared for his very mismal existence! Children? They should be able to play outside. That’s my dream. What is yours?
JohnB
Jan 22, 2008
Every phone made today can be located. it does not matter what carrier you are on. Four years ago we could locate, live, on a map, any t-Mobile phone instantly. (I worked for them) all we needed was the phone number and the phone had to be on.(on a call or not). The only way you cannot find a phone is to shut it “off” or pull the battery. In 1983 when the first “Cell” phones where in use we could find them(it was a little harder and you had to get in a car and locate them). I would like to see it more available to the average person. We already have “big brother” looking at us when they want to, so we might as well get some use out of it. There is plenty of bandwidth so the “overload thing” is invalid. Just my 2cents
slight9
Feb 12, 2008
“If you are worried about kidnapping, move, or smarten up about being a target… A cell phone is not going to save them from harm and ‘real’ kidnappers know all about this stuff.”
Move? You tell me where there is a community guaranteed to never have a kidnapper, and then you can suggest I move. Smarten up about being a target? I am a former law enforcement officer, and I have a permit to carry a concealed weapon, although I rarely do, but I think I know about being a target. My 2 year-old, however, does not. It just takes a moment for a child to be taken, even if you are watching him closely.
A cell phone CAN save them if you are able to get to them before something is done to them. And what are “real” kidnappers?
I would rather do everything I can to protect my child from abduction, and never have to use it, than never use it and something happen to them. You have to be vigilant all the time, the abductor just has to be successful once.
aaron
Jan 18, 2010
kidnappers aint dumb theyll just start throwin the phones away.
User
Mar 08, 2010
I think the majority is just missing the whole point here. First of all, I doubt any of us are that important for the gov’t, or anyone else for that matter, to have a reason to track us unlawfully. Secondly, we live in a ridiculous time were pervs and predators are at large. Has nothing to do with privacy, or the way one has raised their children. All it takes is a split second for a child to get snatched up and I’m sure we’d all be appreciative of some way to track that child if we were in the predicament. I’m with ‘Slight9′ on this one. Truth be told NO ONE has any real privacy w/ modern technology, so why not look at the positive end of tracking devices instead of finding something trivial to gripe about?
16 years old
Mar 14, 2010
I was very interested to hear all that was said here, but let me say this: right or wrong tomorrow my parents WILL be putting tracking software onto my phone. I am a good student (A’s and B’s in school), I have a 27 on my ACT, and take all honors and Advanced Placement classes.
My parents believe this to be necessary because I there 16 year old perfect child have been sneaking out of the house and partying. I have know problem being tracked if it were for some anti-kidnapping precaution, however this is not the case. My parents refuse to give me the responsibility due to me, regardless of achievement.
I do not intend to turn off my phone when i go out, or strap it to a dog for a wild goose chase as was suggested. I am tech savvy enough that when i receive my freshly tampered phone i will blatantly delete the app. i have felt violated by this process and while I cannot be used as an example for all kids i can assure you that personally if my parents would handle me more like the adult that i am becoming rather than a pet we would be able to find a safe compromise for both parties.
As a final reinforcement to my position I would like to also say that the information about my involvement with parties and sneaking out of the house was surrendered willingly two days ago. I ask for your response for, I am interested in ANY views on this real world situation in which there are no “what if’s”.