Are apps like Life360 an invasion of privacy?

Pro

By Peyton Waymeyer

Life 360 and apps like it are apps for families to stay connected.

This app is not for parents to “control” their child’s life; it is a way for parents to know that their child is okay.

If a teen sees from the app that one of their family members is at a spot that is not a usual or normal spot, then they can call and see if they are okay.

When it comes to a teen driver, then their parents might be concerned about their safety, and sometimes people forget to let their family know when they get to the place that they are going to, and this app is here for checking that they made it.

This app allows both parents and teens to know that their family is safe.

Parents find this app as a way to look out for their family, and this app is just about that.

This app doesn’t have to be just for families. Teens could use this app to see when a friend is going to arrive at their meeting spot.

This app can also help teens stay safe while driving.

Teen drivers have been known for being irresponsible, so worried parents can use the app to check on their child.

If a teen knows that their parents are watching their speeds through the app, they are more likely to slow down which will be safer.

After the first time that the parents look, teens may develop a habit to drive more responsibly.

Some people might use it for different reasons, but there is no reason to hate the app all together.

The app was not made for controlling or invading privacy; it is an app that helps people know that the people they are close to are safe.

Con

By Jasmine Padilla

Tracking apps like Life360 are an invasion of teen privacy. If teenagers are always depending on their parents to know where kids are, there’s no room for them to learn how to be safe and independent on their own.

Teenagers don’t want to feel like they’re being tracked like wild animals, and without tracking apps, it will give teens a bit of freedom and not feel like they’re just lab rats.

If parents don’t realize and understand—or at least try to understand—where teenagers are coming from, sooner or later they will get sick of feeling trapped, and will take things into their own hands.

How often do teenagers really take no for an answer? They will eventually find a way around feeling like they are being tracked, whether that’s turning their location off, leaving their phone somewhere else, or finding other ways to not get tracked.

Some tracking apps may go so far as showing what percent the phone battery is at, when teenagers leave the house, the location of the phone, and when the child gets back home.

There’s nothing wrong with wanting to get some privacy or preventing others from knowing exactly where you are whenever they want to find you.

Now some parents get a tracking app to keep their kids from doing something bad, but this may cause some children to feel more anxious about being kidnapped.

However, the odds of being kidnapped are about one in 300,000 according to author James Walsh.

Parents just need to relax and let their teenagers have some freedom and trust that their kid is not running around doing and things.

If a teen is doing bad things, then parents need to find better ways to help than tracking apps like Life360.