Post contributed by Asia Farmer -
Smartphones have the ability to do just about anything in this day and time. What seems to be the new catch is tracking locations via smartphone and other devices. Keeping track of where you are and have gone along with that of your friends is the norm for this generation. Smartphones have the ability to track one’s exact location without that person even thinking twice about it. Social media sites like Facebook and Twitter have even jumped on the bandwagon with providing ways for users to broadcast their exact location at that exact moment through a simple post or status update.
Websites like Four Square, Loopt, and Gowalla have made the job much easier by allowing users to voluntarily track their locations and make comments and reviews. Websites like these provide ways where one can track others by signing up through Facebook. Smartphones also have the ability to act as portable GPS systems and include applications for maps that also track exact locations. Much of what is done on our handy dandy smartphones is being tracked by towers through cell phone companies.
With technology on the rise with tracking every move and locations, it can also aid law enforcement and in doing their jobs by protecting citizens. Many people may consider it unjust for law enforcement and the government to get in the loop to find criminals via new technology. However, with many people directly and indirectly providing the information to the world leaves it up for grabs for anyone.
Source - How much privacy can smartphone owners expect? BBC News Magazine
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