A father’s perspective of using a child tracking app

child tracking app father

I am a new father. With hawk like vision, I spend most of my days transfixed on my new son’s whereabouts, barely letting him break the unseen six foot boundary I have created in my own mind.

This can’t last forever though, sooner or later, I will have to let go, and watch helplessly as my son embarks on his journey into adolescence and beyond.

Do I have to let go fully though?

In the digital age, it is just about possible to keep tabs on anyone with an iPhone, and with social media becoming bigger and more advanced, it takes only seconds to let the world know exactly where you are, who you are with, and what you are doing.

As an adoptive father, I know all too well the security risks posed by social media. My own son’s identity is kept secret for very good reasons, but when the time comes for my son to broaden his horizons, I have no qualms with using a tracking app.

If technology has made parents paranoid, it is not necessarily a bad thing. It is the same technology that is used to groom, manipulate, and take advantage of children. The easier it gets for us to announce our arrival in a foreign country via our mobile phone, the easier it is for children to take that one last, lost step.

More fool you if you think a tracking app is a step too far.

The use of such an app needs to be managed however. It is not a tool to be used to trap your disobedient children, but a safeguard to ensure they can take part in all of life’s fun without the fear of becoming isolated.

I would like to think it can be used with children, rather than against them.

My son is very young, and it is not time to empower myself with this kind of technology, but that doesn’t mean I can’t prepare myself. Who knows where advancements in technology will take us over the next ten or twenty years. It is my responsibility to keep on top of it, at least, for my child’s sake.

 

By:

Andrew McDougall

http://www.theonehandman.co.uk/

The article above was from a MamaBear guest blogger. The MamaBear blog is now accepting guest post from reputable bloggers on a variety of subjects. If you are interested in guest blogging for MamaBear simply contact us here.

MamaBear Worry-Free Parenting App Now Available for Android

Media Contact:
Kelly Prieto, APR
Hayworth Creative
(813) 318-9611
kelly@hayworthcreative.com

MamaBear Worry-Free Parenting App Now Available for Android
First-Ever All-In-One App to Monitor Location, Social Media and
Safe-Speed Driving Released in Google Play

TAMPA, Fla. (October 18, 2012) – Tampa-based geoWaggle LLC announced today that MamaBear, the worry-free parenting app, is now available in Google Play for Android devices. The first-of-its-kind app first launched in August 2012 for iOS, and now works on a combination of devices using either the iOS or Android platform.

“The popularity of Android devices among younger age groups made this an obvious next step for MamaBear,” said Steve MacDonald, founder of geoWaggle. “Now more parents can take advantage of this easy-to-use, all-in-one tool to help protect their kids, no matter what mix of the two platforms their family uses.”

Designed for simplicity, MamaBear works in three steps:

1. Mom and Dad download the parent’s version of MamaBear on their smart phones and tablets for complete visibility and control.

2. Kids download the children’s version of MamaBear, which has only three buttons: Come Get Me, Call for Help and Check In.

3. Parents customize their alert settings to get the precise information they want, including:

MamaBear is currently in public beta and there is no charge for the service. For more information, visit Mamabearapp.com.

 

About MamaBear
The MamaBear app was conceptualized in the summer of 2011 as an all-in-one parenting app that monitors location, social media and safe-speed driving. Developed by a group of parents, digital visionaries and experienced technology entrepreneurs with a vision of a world of worry-free parenting. The mission is to create tools that provide parents a peace of mind while giving children needed freedom. MamaBear values safety, family, trust, empathy and privacy. www.Mamabearapp.com