Major Cell Phone Providers Offer Ability to Track Your Kids via GPS
The popularity of GPS technology has made it inevitable that, sooner or later, it would become available to soothe the fears of worried parents. The use of similar technologies has already been put to use in pets for some time now (many dog breeders, for example, advertise the sale of animals with pre-implanted GPS chips). The difference between the use of this technology in kids and in pets, however, is that people are still a bit stand-offish to the sci-fi idea of implanting children with microchips. Rather, the GPS chips are being installed in something no sufficiently modern teenager will leave home without: a cellphone.
Companies like Verizon are offering this parentally-controlled service for as little as 10 bucks a month. Verizon’s parental survellience service (fittingly called “Chaperone”), provides parents who use it the ability to check on their kids’ whereabouts via a password protected website. Additional options include the establishment of “Child Zones,” which is a service that notifies parents via text message if their child leaves a pre-designated area. The Chaperone service is being marketed by Verizon in conjunction with its LG-designed Migo phone, which allows children to dial only four pre-established numbers.
Oh boy. I’ve expressed concern about this whole tracking people via GPS thing before on this site, so I won’t repeat my rant. I basically think that, especially in the case of children, never being away from a parent’s watchful eye, or never simply being free from a parent’s knowledge of your exact location, is psychologically harmful. Any parent who does this is only secondarily concerned for a child’s well-being and is primarily concerned with easing his or her own worries.
I do think the Migo phones are a decent idea, however. I use to think that kids with phones were ridiculous spoiled brats, but if I was parent, I think I would at least want to be able to get in touch with the kid when I had to, and vice-versa. The problem with the Migo phones, however, is that no kid over the age of 12 would accept one (they look like kiddy toys) and with kids under 12, how long are you going to allow them to room around freely anyway?
For the whole story on the use of GPS technology in keeping track of kids, click here.
