The Blurring Lines Between Stalking and Safety
The world has dived headfirst into the sparkling age of technology, and there is one
technological advancement that has drastically changed the dynamic between children and
parents: the development of location monitoring apps, the most popular of course being life 360.
This app has exploded in the past few years, with active users reaching up to 88 million. The app
provides many handy features including constantly tracking kid’s locations, monitoring driving
speeds, and notifying parents when their kids have left home. At first, all of this tracking sounds
incredibly unproblematic. It is all in the name of safety, right? Yes, on the surface this app is
nothing but a tool. However, when one begins to look deeper into child tracking apps, the reality
is much less utopian. Instead, it creates morally treacherous ground for families and raises
questions on the limitations of companies' rights to private information. Not only has the life 360
company been under fire for selling millions of users’ information, raising concerns about
security within the app, the immense power and control given to parents can easily become
overbearing and destructive. The ramifications of this app have left kids longing for a childhood
filled with freedom and discovery, one that many of their parents had, but they can now only
dream of.
One of the main issues with companies such as life 360 is the practice of selling location
data, which is then used by companies for targeted advertisements. The CEO has claimed selling
data is an important aspect of the app to offer free services to all customers, but it still leaves
room for concern. In 2021, the company was forced to make some changes after the selling of
minors' private data sparked controversy regarding the app. According to News Channel 6, “In
response to 2021 criticism for selling users’ precise location data—including that of
minors—Life360 halted such practices.” Life 360 has transitioned away from selling precise
location data, now selling “aggregated” data. This means user information that has been grouped
together, or de-identified, rather than information directly connected to a specific person. Though
this has been an important change within the app to enhance privacy, there are still risks such as
reidentification of private data, potential privacy violations, and overall security vulnerability.
The motives of these changes seem solely to maintain Life 360’s audience and retain profit.
According to The Markup, Life 360 reportedly generated almost $16 million from selling
location data in 2020. This emphasizes the fact that Life 360 is not fully looking out for the
safety of its users; instead, it is a business model driven by profitability. Though the company
attempts to come across as transparent with its utilization of data, not enough steps are actually
being taken to create lasting changes within the app.
Another aspect of life 360 creating issues is its role in contributing to family dynamics
built not around communication, but surveillance and mistrust. Many teenagers feel suffocated
by their parents’ continuous monitoring, and many can lash out as they feel a lack of respect.
Helicopter parenting, characterized as “hovering” over children’s lives and managing their every
move, has become much easier with apps like life 360 providing in-depth tracking information.
A lack of privacy can lead to tense family conflict and overall lack of communication between
family members. A systematic review concluded that “It might also be that on a societal level,
helicopter parenting, is sufficient in creating an environment characterized by heightened focus
on dangers and uncertainties that might lead to increased population anxiety and depression."
What this means is that when kids are constantly surrounded by fear and monitoring, this anxiety
manifests itself in children, as they become a product of their environment. This can be seen with
feelings of isolation or general stress. In my own experience with anxiety, hanging out with
friends can often become overshadowed by my fears of whether I'm going to get a frantic text
asking where I am, or get in trouble because I decided to venture somewhere in my city. Even if
children are used to being micromanaged and monitored on apps like life 360 and do not care,
impacts can be seen on a child’s growth and development. In an article comparing the ultra-
controlling parents of gen z with the latchkey kids of gen x, David French states, “We corrected
for the absence of adult influence by micromanaging their lives to such an extent that our kids
are conditioned to appeal to authority figures for help whenever they encounter emotional
discomfort.” Kids are not being taught how to fend for themselves, both mentally and physically;
the ramifications will be seen as they become dependent on their parents’ validation and
approval. Kids should be allowed to hang out with friends, explore their town, and go to the
movies without feeling weighed down by the fears of their parents. Safety has become the only
thing on parents’ minds, instead of focusing on the overwhelming benefits of allowing kids to
learn and grow without the constriction of parents’ opinions and concerns.
Even more alarming than frustrated kids is the aspect of being monitored unknowingly.
According to the Scientific American, “14 percent of parents who participated in the study
claimed to use a tracking app while their child reported that they weren’t being surveilled,
indicating that the monitoring was done unbeknownst to the child.” Again, this creates a dynamic
centered around lack of communication, something that is hugely important in the growth of
teenagers. If kids discover they are being tracked without their knowledge, it can create deeply
rooted conflict and damage relationships beyond repair.
Overall, when considering downloading apps like Life 360, it is important to consider the
immense, and often unacknowledged, implications that come with forcing a child to download
an app that monitors their every move. The rapid development of tracking apps like Life 360 has
not only resulted in major privacy issues, but it has also fueled a lack of communication and
division within families. In a blog by Verywell Mind, Elizabeth Scott defines a healthy family
dynamic as one “[providing] a basis of love, support, guidance, and stability.” A stable family
relationship can look different for everyone, but when surveillance becomes synonymous with
safety, it can lead to unintended consequences for all those involved. It is time for parents to
make a decision. Are they going to build their family relationships off their own worries and
fears? Or are they going to encourage their kids to experience life the same way they did before
the suffocating grip of technology became too hard to let go of?