Kids, GPS, and the Privacy Question

Another key component in asking if parents should use kids GPS devices is the question of privacy and privacy rights. Do children and teens have a fundamental right to "location privacy" or this something that parents have the right to know at all times?

This is obviously a difficult question, but I do think that the answer is that children do not have a fundamental right to location privacy - making the use of kids GPS acceptable philosophically.

Let me explain. When your child was first conceived, you knew exactly where they were at all times. They were inside the uterus. Know you didn't know the exact location in space that their cells inhabited, but you did know that wherever you (or your wife) were was exactly where your kids was. There was no chance that your child wasn't there and you knowledge of their position was complete.

Once they left the womb, from the ages of 0 to 6 months you or your spouse probably knew exactly where your child was at every moment of every day. If they weren't in your care or the care of your spouse directly you were within eye sight of your child's location and were constantly able to keep tabs on them.

As they grew still older they might have come under the care of a baby sitter or family member who promised to watch your child while you went on a date or attended to some important matter like a doctors appointment or a legal matter. The baby sitter or family member kept your child in one location or told you that they would take them to a local park at a certain time. You still knew exactly where your child was going to be, but this knowledge was one step removed. Your relative told you where they would be and you took their word for it.

As your kids grow older and older they will become increasingly responsible for letting you know where they are at any given point in time - but you still expect to know where they are. Even with a teenage son who is a senior in high school parents will want to know where he is and what he is doing. This seems very reasonable to me and is something that parents should expect to be able to do with their children.

This is where GPS comes into play. In all these circumstances where we rely on other individuals to let us know where our children are going to be - whether it be the child themselves, a babysitter, a relative, or even our kid's friend's parents - kids GPS seems to me to be a valid substitute for these individuals letting me know where my child is.

It is not that I don't trust these people to tell me where they are going to be, it is simply that a GPS device is a much more reliable and useful way to communicate where they are. Know that a child is at the park is very different from know that a child is now on the swings at the park. While a phone call to your baby sitter could get you this information, it just seems simpler and easier to give your child a GPS tracking device, like a GPS tracking watch, and check up on their location via the internet.

Then there is the obvious instances where your child is not where they are supposed to be. This can occur for a number of reasons and all of them leave a feeling of emptiness in our stomachs. You will want to know exactly where you child is in these circumstances and relying on a babysitter, relative, friend, or the child themselves will not do because in most situations none of them will be able to tell you because they will not know or will be prevented from telling you.

Kids GPS always* knows where your child is. It can be used to find them in a relatively short amount of time - saving you and your child from untold grief.

* Always is not entirely true, but it can always tell given certain conditions. It is just that these conditions are not always meet.

Kids GPS devices do not infringe on your child's privacy and are well within the rights of parents to use for safety and other parental obligations to their child.