More and more teens find themselves unsupervised before and after school as both parents are forced to work outside of the home. Recognizing parents need for teen supervision Sprint developed “Family Locator” technology. For an extra $9.99 a month Sprint will track the location of up to four phones – you can usually use the service with your existing phones.
The Family locator does not work like a “tracking service” that follows you wherever you go. Instead it allows parents to get a “snapshot” of the location of a family member. For example you can program the phone to send a notice when your child arrives at school, or hasn’t arrived; if your child leaves school early; that the child went to dance class; got home at an appointed time, or didn’t.
The parents, who are the only ones with the access codes, preprogram the phones with certain landmarks. Landmarks can include school, home, friends’ homes, the ballpark, as well as places they don’t want their children to go. When the phone arrives at and leaves the landmarks a text message is sent to the parents phone. Parents can also pinpoint their child’s exact location on the phone or computer at any time.
Some might call it spying on your children. But Sprint points out that the child is aware of the system. Parents and children can discuss what locations will relay messages and what is expected. Every time the parent locates the child, the child receives a text message telling he or she they have been located.
The service also includes 100 text messages, so if parents suspect their child’s phone has been handed off to a friend they can text or call to check.
Some teens might resent the parental supervision, but hey isn’t that what parents are supposed to do?