Tracked or Trapped: Life360
We all know of the not so loved app Life360, but is it getting too personal or used to an extent?
Life360 is an app made by Chris Hulls in 2008. In 2008 the app was only released to the Android market. Two years later in 2010 the app was released to IOS. There’s two versions of the app, there's the free or full version thats costs $7.99 per month or $69.99 per year. The free version only covers the whereabouts of the people on your app and the full or premium version covers speed, whereabouts, phone usage, battery and much more. Parents of teenagers most likely use this app and download it on their kids phones to track where they are going and what they’re doing.
From talking to many parents in my past it’s clear that they get it to keep their kids “safe”. I put that in quotations because it’s becoming more of an obsession and priority than a quick check up. Parents typically get this to track their teenagers speed when they first start driving but then it turns into checking for everything else. The speed check turned into checking the amount of phone usage, every turn they took while driving, and their battery percentage. From what I’ve learned there’s about three different types of parents when it comes to Life360.
The ones that don’t care for it and if you mess up (for example, getting a speeding ticket) it’s on you, and that’s your fault.
The ones that actually have the app to check your speed and just has the app and never uses it.
Then there’s the ones that obsess over what their kid is doing at every second of the day.
Not that having a protective parent is a bad thing and them checking to see if you’re okay is never wrong but I believe there’s a point where the app is too invasive. Parents have become obsessive and prioritize checking Life360 all day. In today’s time parents seem to not be the only ones obsessing over this app and invading someone's privacy.
It’s becoming pretty common to hear from 7th-9th graders that they use this app when they’re in a relationship to track what their partner is doing all the time and where they’re going. This is beyond invasive and just practical. If you’re that obsessed with what your partner is doing at all times or vice versa then it’s not a healthy relationship.
Personally I don’t really have a connection or issue with this app. My parents (especially my mom) believes it’s too much information and it’s unhealthy. I have friends that have parents that constantly check it and it stresses them out. My opinion of the app is pretty mixed. Clearly parents are using the app to check your well being; however, there may be healthier alternatives to check up on a teenager.