Published on: Oct 2, 2026, 11:55:12 IST

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Melbourne, As children grow up and become more independent, parents and carers may start to worry about their safety while they're out. Their child might start walking to school alone, playing with friends outside the house, or spending time in the neighbourhood without adult supervision.

Parents might consider using location-tracking technology, such as GPS-enabled phones, apps or smartwatches, to keep a tab on their kids. This technology collects location information and displays it on a map in real time.

While there are benefits to using the tech, there are also risks to be aware of.

So, what should parents keep in mind?

Why track your child?

Parents often start tracking their children when they're between the ages of 8 and 12.

The rationale is that tracking supports children's mobility and freedom while also allowing parents to stay informed of their movements and have peace of mind. Tracking can also be reciprocal, with features allowing children to track their parents.

It can be used more practically to manage family logistics and routines, too, such as letting parents know when to pick their child up from the bus stop, or what time to have dinner on the table.

How does location tracking work?

There are many apps and devices that make location tracking possible. These include phone features such as Apple's Find My, social media mapping features such as Snapchat's Snap Map, dedicated family location sharing apps such as Life360, and children's smartwatches such as SpaceTalk.

These technologies vary in their functionality, but all of them visualise children's location data and notify parents of their movements.

For younger children, wearable devices, such as kids' smartwatches, are appealing to parents as they allow for location monitoring without all the features, costs or risks of owning a smartphone.

For older children and teenagers, location sharing has now extended into friendship communication – especially with Snap Map, which is embedded in existing social media networks and is often out of parents' view. Teenagers commonly share their location as part of their close friendships, to facilitate catch-ups, and for peer connection.

What are the risks?

While location tracking provides parents with useful knowledge, it also means information about their child's everyday movements is being collected, stored, and potentially misused by third parties, such as advertisers and data brokers. It's not always clear what happens to the data that is collected about those movements.

Location data sharing also holds a risk of exposing young people to stalking, surveillance, and privacy violations. These technologies can be exploited, for example, by perpetrators of family violence to monitor and control children.

So location data is not just what a parent sees in an app interface – rather, it is something that's often hidden. Parents and carers should check privacy settings on location-tracking devices and apps to evaluate what information is collected, who can access it, how long it is retained and whether it is shared or sold.

How parents feel about it

A 2023 survey of 112 Australian parents suggests they often feel conflicted about using these technologies and worry constant monitoring may undermine trust with their child. However, some parents also believed location tracking was beneficial to their child's wellbeing and helped with family management.

Others said they preferred to use the terms "checking in" and "touching base", rather than "tracking". As one parent stated:

I've used it to check my son's location so I can meet up with him or check if he's arrived safely at a friend's house. I am not a fan of "tracking" – I think it's harmful to be monitored constantly, but I do like the ability to "check in".

When should parents stop tracking?

Research shows some children continue to be tracked into young adulthood. Some young adults have even posted on social media to vent their frustration about how the tech can inhibit their independence and autonomy.

This raises an important issue of consent. A child might agree to location tracking when an app is first installed. But if that tracking continues for years, does that original agreement still count?

Parents may need to treat location sharing as an ongoing conversation rather than a one-time decision. SKS

SKS

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.

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