Tracking Your Kids?

So I just saw a commercial for a phone on Verizon that tracks your family 24/7. Am I the only one who thinks this is a little overboard? What ever happened to privacy and trust? Are kids today really THAT horrible that we have to track them at the mall? I'm just a little furious at this insane over-parenting lately? I feel like it just creates a situation for your kids to go way overboard when they finally have some freedom. What do you guys think?

I'm a parent and I'm probably a little over protective, and I think this is insane. I won't do that to him.

I can see using it with younger children (having lost one or two along the line once or twice -- horrible feeling). But then again, I don't give my children cell phones, so that is sort of a moot point. I can see using it on an older kid if they were causing trust issues, but then again, I probably wouldn't let them have a cell phone at that point and they would be under my nose at all times until they re-earned that trust. Again, not a problem I have ever had with any of my kids, so this is all supposition on my part. As a teacher, you'd be surprised (or maybe you wouldn't) at what kids are doing while their parents aren't looking. Scary, scary. So glad I had pretty good kids.

It's really not about trusting your kids, it's about not trusting the perpetrators out there. The are rapists and murderers not to mention the child traffickers, ya the ones who will turn your kid into a sex commodity to be sold over ane over again. Know how many kids are stuck in this hellish life in the US alone? 100,000. The automotive industry has a way of stopping a car that has been reported stolen yet people don't feel comfortacle tracking their kids. What does that say about our priorities? Cars can be replaced, and your kids?

Totally agree with you nucking....

If I had my way I would chip them but hubby would never allow it. lol.

I think it is a good idea myself. supposing someone kidnapped your child and they had a cell phone with that feature....it might actually help find them.

I guess I feel the opposite because I'm only 22? Maybe my opinion will change whenever I have kids but I feel like if my mom would have done that to me I would have just stashed my cell phone somewhere and left anyways. I got a cell phone when I got my license because my dad wanted me to be able to call for help in emergencies.

I guess, I know I did a lot of stupid stuff when I was a teenager but if you look at the stats, most abuse/kidnappings/rape happen between people that already know each other. Most kids are not in danger of being snatched up by a random person. It's something like 80% of girls who are raped are raped by someone they know so I just don't see complete strangers as a threat. And I grew up in Dayton and Cincinnati. I guess I just feel like it would make more sense to have your child take a self defense class than track their phone? I took one and am quite confident that if someone tried to attack me I could fend them off to at least get away. My dad has always been very pro-freedom and rather just teach me how to defend myself so I guess I don't see the point.

Good points from everyone though. It's always interesting for me to see the complete opposite side of my thoughts.

Even though I think "yes", I really couldn't do this. Believe me, I have a 14-year old daughter, and I can only imagine what I may discover. But I won't do it, absolutely not. I have to trust her, and respect her decisions to a point. I strictly limit her socialization outside the home/school because that is something I can control, for now.

I just couldn't do it...sorry

With all do respect, none of the aforementioned individuals are going to allow their victims the privilege of a cell phone. You're going to find that phone in a ditch somewhere or a pawn shop, if you're lucky. And, as another member said, most rapes and murders occur within a social group.

The tracking device is, more than anything, to put the parents' minds at ease at the expense of trust and freedom.

And... Who's to say the same technology couldn't be used against the victims? For example, an abusive man/woman could use it to further control his/her spouse.

It's my humble opinion that the phone companies are capitalizing on parents' fear.

I agree with Myers. In fact, one of the things we are taught, from the DV shelter, is to turn off the GPS tracking feature on our cell phones. I am a very over protective mom. My daughter isn't allowed outside without me, and she is almost 9. Of course this has to do with the neighborhood we live in. She does NOT have a cell phone, and will NOT get one until she is driving. Children do not need the distraction of a cell phone. If we, as parents, cannot be responsible enough to know where our children are, what they are doing, and how to contact the other parent; then I do not believe we should be parents. When I was growing up, my mom would never allow us to go to a friend's house if their parent was not home. Shoot, we couldn't go out with friends unless there was a parent chaproning us. In this day and age, I think it is more important than ever to know what your children are doing. The world just is not as safe as it once was. If my daughter had a cell phone, I would use the tracking device as a tool to check up on her. If she can prove that she is always where she says she is going to be, then I would slowly stop tracking her. Children have the right to have their own boundaries while still in our safe keeping.

If we, as parents, cannot be responsible enough to know where our children are, what they are doing, and how to contact the other parent; then I do not believe we should be parents.


With a nine year old child I know this is possible however remembering that with most high school children are allowed out at lunchtime. That they are likely to be transporting themselves to and from school you may find this a little more of a challenge !

My 9-year-old son could disable a GPS tracking device in a cell phone faster than I could install the software. I imagine a teenager could do the same. I vote in favor of teaching the teenager about dangerous situations and what to do if faced with that situation instead of attempting to track their every move.

Would still rather chip the child ! We chip dogs we chip cars why not something even more precious ?

Its not the child disobeying me I am worried about its the perverts out there who will stop at nothing to kidnap and abuse a child.

I'm sorta on the fence on this one because 1st of all I don't support giving young kids cell phones - worried about the brain cancer risk. But I do wish there was some sort of wrist band tracking device a parent could use at places like Disney World. When my youngest was 3 we all went to Disney World. You know how they have the rides and at the end there's a gift shop. Well I'm very safety oriented, but somehow my 3 yr old went out the door while we were in the gift shop. I turned around and she was gone and my heart sank. I ran out of the gift shop and thank God there was a Disney employee holding my daughters hand. So in cases like this I would have loved to have a tracking device. I don't think it's practical for parents to monitor teenagers for 'trust' reasons because kids will just disable the device.

Okay... Criminals know about the GPS tracking devices, especially those in the human trafficking business and other organized crime. They throw the phone away, or even destroy it. This isn't just "what Michael would do if he kidnapped someone," it's common knowledge in the "less than reputable businesses." Some of the more tech-savvy criminals (yet again, those in organized crime) actually use these tracking devices against people. So they know where your children are too. I'm not trying to scare anyone. I'm just trying to make people more aware of how criminals work.

And, teenagers need freedom and trust from their parents. It's a part of the development process for them to make their own choices and become more independent. You can say, "I'm only doing it to protect you," but they usually don't perceive it that way. When they are denied that freedom and trust, they will rebel. And when they rebel, they run right into the hands of those you're trying to protect them from.

You have not convinced me ! Given the choice I would still chip them however hubby is againts it.

As for 'organised' crime most of the kids taken in the uk are by the local pervert.

As for tracking their every move well thats just not done if chipped. It would be held by a local company who would track your child IF they go missing. And the police would be alerted.

That's not going to stop them. It might hinder local pervs, or at least make it easier for them to get caught, but not organized crime. If worst comes to worst, they'll take the chip out.

Something needs to be done, but not chipping people. I mean, if they start chipping younger kids, they might start chipping senior citizens with dementia, then convicts who are out on parole. Will they eventually just start chipping everyone? Will overbearing employers start using tracking devices to spy on their employees? Where would we draw the line, and say this is unethical?

Chipping convicts wouldn't in my mind be a bad thing especially if they are on the sex register ...

Also people with dementia as this past winter two pensioners went missing one of whom died of exposure .

If they started chipping convicts, the government would be involved. That's not something I even want to think about.

And if it's strictly a company that monitors the chipping, having the chip call 911 if necessary, then I would be concerned with misuse of that information among the company workers. Yet again, you don't think these potential murderers/rapists would actively try to get a job at one of these companies so they could get that information? And I wouldn't be surprised if crime syndicates were the ones running the company.

No I dont think they would try to get a job there why bother ?

Why burgle a house with a dog barking when the one next door has no dog ....

I absolutely trust my children, it’s just the of the rest of the world I have issues with. But I would like to qualify that statement and say I wouldn't utilize it to know track them like a convict on house arrest. If I was unable to reach them on their cell, I'd definately utilize the "find my child" feature.

I just upgraded my husband's phone today and his new phone comes with that feature...it's not just tracking your kids...it's tracking your family....feels creepy to me to have my husband be able to tell where I am at every moment of the day.

How in the world did we all grow up to be middle aged when our parents didn't have a tracking device on us? OMG if my Mom knew everything I did she would have locked me up forever....but those life mistakes I made...well...they taught me a lot that I would not know now if I hadn't been allowed to make those mistakes.

JMO

I think that a lot of this comes from the media sensationalizing violence. You need to know the facts of your neighborhood. I used to sneak out of my house at 3 am and walk around my town just because my parents wouldn't give me any freedom. I never got kidnapped. I never got abducted and sold to the sex trade. I understand your feeling Tishie but I really feel that some of your fears are a little irrational. Mostly because I used to have those fears and my T flat out told me that I was being irrational. So I went to a self defense class and learned the facts.

Most people who are kidnapped/raped - it is done by someone they know.

Typically when people rob a place with a gun, they have no intention of actually using it. They're usually too scared to even know how to use it.

You cannot get straight facts except to go and ask police. Some sites say violence has gone down since the 70s and some say it has gone up since then.

You say its not because you don't trust your kids, you just don't trust the other people? So why not give them the power to defend themselves? That's just teaching them to live a life of fear. I know that, even though any guy who is going to mug me is most likely going to be bigger than me, I know exactly what to do in that situation. I have been tested with 2 policemen running at me attacking me and I beat the crap out of both of them (for the class of course).

One time I was standing on the sidewalk in a town I had never been to before, by myself, a guy came up to me and put his arm around me and tried to walk away with me so I punched him dead in the chest screamed at him until someone came and took him away and I walked back inside.

I am not defenseless, neither are your children. Teach them, don't scare them.

Susan - YES!!! Oh my god, how has the human race survived without hand sanitizer and tracking devices?

Anyone remember lawn darts?! We used to stand in the yard and throw darts at each other........but we can't be safe riding our bikes down the sidewalk?

I always think its hilarious that people think some of these things are necessary. Because the human race didn't exist for over 200,000 years before the invention of all this crap.

I'm not even talking about preditors. I would most likely use this in a situation where my child (or husband) was due to be home and not called to say they were detained and I am unable to reach them.

I think I would like this feature more to find my phone since I'm constantly losing the stupid thing.