Verizon Chaperone
Verizon is getting ready to launch a new GPS child tracking service called Verizon Chaperone. The new service is anticipated to be available in May, powered by the LG Migo phone. It is anticipated the service will cost $15 per month.
Among the features of this location based service (LBS) are geofencing; the process of setting up a perimeter something is able to travel before an alert is setup. In this case you can setup a geofence around a few city blocks, a city, etc and then parents will automatically receive a text message if the child travels outside that geofence.
Other location based services are in the works for Verizon in the next few months in addition to the previously discussed Verizon VZ Navigator service which provides driving directions over cellphone.
This GPS system could have a larger market for use with Altzheimers affected persons and persons who cannot speak reliably like those with aphasia. Care givers and relatives want to know where the affected person may be located.
The phone targeted for kids alone is good but it would be better also to enable regular cell phones, not those limited to 4 preprogrammed numbers.
Due to a stroke I have aphasia and frequently cannot speak. This system would give me more freedom because my family could find me even though I may not be able to tell them wherre i am or where i am going to be.
My husband wants to see where I am on hiss cell phone display, too, so we can separately travel.
Hi Marlin,
There are other products that might interest you such as the Globalsat TR-101, Navizon Buddy Tracker, and the Laipac Personal Locator.
There may even be products out there than can perform the functionality you are looking for with your current phone depending on the type of phone and what country you are in.
Verizon now offers a number of “normal” phones with the chaperone capability, including some of the hottest phones on the market today – like Motorola’s RAZR.
i think that this technology may be goos use for altzheimers or children of yuong age between 8-12or younger. Any older this can be invading a teens privacy and that is not something that anyone wants even as an adult. Parents may believe that it useful to help their son or daughter to protect them and make sure they are okay, but before this was even thought of teens have been able to manage. In most cases parents would most likely be using this device to make sure their child is not doing something they shouldnt be, not to have them come home for dinner or somethinng simple like that because all they would have to do is call. Kids should have their privacy as well as anyone else. You dont see compnays making devices so teens may locate their parent and see what they are doing and bother them.
So to those who think this is an invasion of your teen’s privacy… my thought– you are either a teenager or you have been lucky enough to not have to deal with a troubled teen. I like this for my teens. My one teenager — I doubt I’d ever need it but would be a nice to have if he gets hit on the side of the road and is lying there mortally wounded. However, in the case of my daughter it will be nice to have when she claims she is sleeping over at Julie’s house but in fact is over at her BFs house or out doing god knows what.
Nice try on the post now return to reality from your fairytale land.
I am interested in finding a product, probably GPS or cell phone (or both) based that will allow me to track my young children (and pets) near and far. What products do you like for these kinds of uses??
Thank you.
I’m currently researching these tracking services for my teenage daughter. Her best friend from high school moved about two and a half hours away, via the interstate, so she visits her from time to time. I’m glad the girls can still visit. Recently, my daughter had car trouble, and called me, very upset, and wasn’t exactly sure where she was on the interstate. She told me where she THOUGHT she was — turned out she was 20 miles south of that area. You think I want a teenage girl walking down the interstate, looking for a mile marker so she can relay her exact location?!
Everything turned out OK, but I’m now VERY interested in being able to pinpoint her location. I want to let her “try her wings,” but I would feel much more at ease if I could get to her quickly if something ever came up. I mentioned it to her and believe me, she was ALL FOR IT the idea.
Richard, have you thought about getting her a GPS navigation system instead of just a tracking device? There are numerous advantages. In the example you cited a tracking device wouldn’t have done any good if she couldn’t reach someone who had access to the account information to then find her location.
Thus the advantage of a GPS navigation system is that she could find out on her own where she was from the GPS. If she needed to reach someone in an emergency and couldn’t track down you, she could easily call the police for help and give them her location as indicated on the GPS.
Good idea about the GPS nav system. I have to admit that the thought of someone ELSE being able to track her is very spooky. The advantage of using her phone has more to do with her personality: that phone is practically GLUED to her; she never goes anywhere without it. So even if she were off with friends (which happened once, when her friend’s car had a flat tire & they called me), I could still find them. There’s also the convenience factor: one less gizmo to keep up with.
But I do know she wants a GPS navigator. She was telling me that she can get some kind of map service now on her phone — that would be the best of both worlds, if it will also return her location.
Anyone know of a cell phone that has GPS mapping, similar to a tom-tom?
There are quite a few phones which offer navigation. The phones available to you would depend on where you live and your phone provider. Stop by a local store of your provider and they can let you know which phones and services are available.
sounds like a great service. I hope it works out.
I just added this feature to my two teen-age daughters’ phones. I definately don’t think it’s an invasion of privacy since they have been playing games with their whereabouts lately and privacy is earned until you’re an adult on your own. I love the concept, but have had problems with not being able to use it while they are on the phone or if the phone is turned off (I get the messege on the phone or computer when I try to locate them). I’ll give it a little more time and then decide if it happens more than not.
obody wants to invade their kids Privacy, But peace of mind knowing that you can get to your kids at any given time during a catastrophe or just a simple emergency is well worth it. look up the ACCU TRACKING system and it works like wonders
As always when technology races ahead, the issue of technological benefits vs personal rights and freedoms must be addressed. In the wrong hands, these gadgets can become tools of tyranny and dictatorship. Used wisely, they can save lives and bring peace of mind. Do we have the maturity and self-discipline to strike the right balance?
Unless they are legally emancipated, minors do not have any legal right to privacy be it phone usage, medical records, bedrooms, etc,… Couple that with the fact that said teens are using telephones on their parents’ service, the parents have EVERY right and OBLIGATION to monitor their child’s wireless telephone usage.
Totally agree, can’t wait for this service!!!!
DONT INVADE YOUR KID’S PRIVACY!!! IT’S TOTALLY RUDE AND INNAPROPRIATE!! THEY CAN HANDLE THEMSELVES!!! SHUT DOWN THIS WEBSITE!!
I have tried the Chaperone program through Verizon. It is worthless. The “child phone” has the ability to cancel the location request and the phone constantly pops up messages about Chaperone doing this or that. For the person who is tracking their loved one for safety it will not work due to the fact that anyone can turn off the tracking feature on the phone. As for the untrusty child, they can cancel, turn off and/or uninstall the application after they discover it by one of the many pop up messages that are produced by Chaperone. Verizon claims that privacy laws prohibit them from removing the messages, however, if their phone is on your plan, you are allowed to track it without permission as it is YOUR plan.
Hi Tyson,
You may not want to answer me but i am kind of desperate for answers. recently my dad just put this on my phone because he has “lost all trust in me.” i wont get into what i did but it really has made me change my lifestyle. however being a teenager plans chnge all the time and i dont tell my parents where i am at all the time because it is pointless and my mother will think im up to no good even if im doing nothing wrong. anyways i was wondering if you could tell me more about how i can cancel the tracking feature on my phone? Thank you.
You cannot \cancel\ it permanently, you have to catch when the phone is updating the location (ie: when the parent phone requests a location or when the program itself sends the update for entering or leaving a \watched\ area.
Tyson,
does the tracking device system still work if the phone is turned off?
No, it will not track if the phone is off. This is a fuzzy subject actually. It is rumored that “emergency services” can have your phone booted or enable the GPS beacon if needed (even if the phone is off). But again, this is a rumor and not so much a fact. I find it hard to believe, but hey, it could be possible. Keeping that in mind, you could theoretically send a signal to the phone to “enable” the GPS functionality. This however is not part of the Chaperone suite.
I have been using the chaperone as a car tracker for 3 years. It works very nicely!
I love this idea— for me best idea ever. I will be lojacking my teens and I will not be ashamed to tell everyone about it. My child is MY responsibility and I take that responsibility very seriously. GREAT IDEA!!!
I have recently switched to Vzn and saw this feature. I also think it’s a great idea! Safety of whereabouts is critical in these days of child molesters that seem to be gowing in numbers.
I have to agree with some of the parents here. If I am paying the bill for all lines, I will track every last one without them knowing! I have told my folks several times that I was a couple blocks away or I’m on the bus now when I was still at the metro not even walking towards the bus stop. We were all young once and do believe….your children will do it as well.Remember your mom saying that to you? lol Trying this feature next week. be blessed all!
I’m not a parenting expert… only a GPS expert.
So I’ll speak my opinion and then I probably won’t respond to any more comments outside of my expertise. I’m a left-brained person and with most anything in life I try to look at the data and make rational decisions based on probability rather than emotions. So I looked up the stats. I found this data from stats.org via http://freerangekids.wordpress.com/ :
I’m not saying tracking kids is a bad thing– just that when taking the emotion out and looking at stats the world isn’t as scary of a place than TV news would lead us to believe. I’ll return to talking about GPS now.
true. The world is not place, it’s some of the people. The reality is that it happens and as a parent, I worry sometimes. This feature is good for many reasons.
I have had Verizon Chaperone now called Family Locator since march of 2009 and it gives ( false locations),alerts are not accurate sometimes, and have been given the run around about solving the problems. You cannot rely on it and wish I had saved my money. I have it for my 12 year old sons phone and he is fine with it. At first in march it worked ok then they started playing with it and totaly made it locate your kid 5 miles from the actutal location. Don’t jump on your kids because they are not where they should or should not because it just might be a wrong reading on their location.
Will my teen find out if I add the chaperone on his phone? (will he get a message from verizon that saying that im ‘watching’ him?)