Devices that make our everyday life a bit easier to navigate are priceless to most of us.\u00a0 The advances in GPS technology, for instance, have made trips much less stressful for the business and recreational traveler.\u00a0 An excursion to a new city or even through your home state is a lot more enjoyable with a GPS system there to navigate, through detours and side trips.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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Most of us are familiar with the handheld or removable GPS devices used in cars.\u00a0 But did you know cell phones are equipped with GPS tracking devices as well.\u00a0 As part of a Federal mandate, wireless carriers are required equip cell phones with GPS tracking capabilities. Known as the E911 mandate, this was enacted to aid in locating and identifying individuals who dialed 911 for emergency assistance.\u00a0 Before this, 911 calls made from cell phones left responders with the difficult task of reaching victims based on little or no accurate location descriptions.\u00a0 Think about it, if you were in a car accident in the middle of the night along an unfamiliar road, what details would you be able to provide as to your whereabouts?\u00a0<\/p>\n
The safety benefits here are unquestionable.\u00a0 Response times are reduced thanks to accurate location information provided by cell phone GPS tracking data.\u00a0 However, as marketing seems to be extending the use and benefits of this feature beyond the realm of safety, the distinction between safety and invasion of privacy is becoming less clear.\u00a0<\/p>\n
GPS tracking devices now in phones may also be used for directions\/acquisition of maps for driving, walking, and hiking, for an additional fee.\u00a0 Companies are also marketing the phones, and other small GPS devices, as a means of monitoring children and teens, employees, vehicles and even spouses.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Providing a monitoring service to parents who want to keep track of their kids is big business for the leader in children\u2019s entertainment.\u00a0 The Disney Mobile network allows parents to track their children\u2019s movements from the convenience of their home computer.\u00a0 Is this a product based on need or paranoia?\u00a0\u00a0 Will viewing your child\u2019s whereabouts remain a private luxury or will others be watching your children as well?\u00a0 Scary thought, but one we need to think about when we start monitoring our loved ones, in global proportions.<\/p>\n
How about employers who want to keep tabs on their employees?\u00a0 For legitimate reasons, an employer may wish to know where a driver is to better direct service calls or delivery schedules.\u00a0 He may do so by cell phone GPS or by placing a GPS tracker within the vehicle.\u00a0 How about an employer who uses employees\u2019 tracked movements to judge productivity or job performance?\u00a0 Can how long an employee stays at one sales call or even the duration a lunch break be used to justly increase or decrease job ratings?\u00a0<\/p>\n
As more and more individuals have access to GPS technology, the chances for anyone of us to be monitored increases.\u00a0 Who views this information?\u00a0 Is it voluntary? For how long and where the information is stored are just a few of the questions being raised. Are we heading into a \u201cSurveillance Society\u201d?\u00a0\u00a0 As a society we are responsible for determining how much \u201cwatching\u201d is too much.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Devices that make our everyday life a bit easier to navigate are priceless to most of us.\u00a0 The advances in GPS technology, for instance, have made trips much less stressful for the business and recreational traveler.\u00a0 An excursion to a new city or even through your home state is a lot more enjoyable with a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":17,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rank_math_focus_keyword":"","rank_math_description":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[155],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-44","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-gps-tracking-features"],"yoast_head":"\n