Now you can monitor the whereabouts of anyone using a mobile phone, at least in the UK. Scary, or what? MapAmobile offers a service which can locate someone via their mobile phone, anywhere in the UK, notify you when they move from that location, 24 hours a day. The privacy element: mapAmobile, which is touting the service as a way to reassure yourself about where your loved ones are, needs the permission of the person you wish to locate and sends them regular text reminders that they’re being monitored.
My question: Isn’t this false comfort? Just because you know where the phone is, doesn’t mean you know where your loved one is, or whether they’re safe. They may have been kidnapped, had their handphone stolen, or just left it in the car. I can’t help feeling this kind of thing has more to do with bosses keeping an eye on employees (who would be smart enough to ditch their mobile in a drawer and then head out shopping). And if this has nothing to do with snooping, why is the ‘o’ in the logo a target?