GPS Tracking Could Change Smart Phones
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- Category: GPS Tracking
Court GPS Tracker Decision May Reach Cell Phones
Privacy is something that has vanished at an increasingly exponential rate as technology has progressed. That is because with all of the vast benefits associated with technological devices; computers, smart phones and websites are now essentially programmed to monitor what people do in order to create a more personalized, user-friendly experience. While many people have embraced how search engines, websites and smart phones have recorded personal information to market products and services more specific to what that individual may be interested in, many others have raised concerns about privacy. Although nothing in the short-term suggests search giants and smart phone manufacturers will no longer analyze data collected via cookies and GPS tracker data, a recent Supreme Court decision regarding the police use of GPS tracking devices could impact the way personal information is collected from popular electronics devices.
When a case involving law enforcement who equipped a suspected drug dealer's automobile with a GPS tracker went to the Supreme Court, gadget enthusiasts, police agencies and privacy advocates all waited and stood by with a watchful eye. That is because the decision, whichever way it was decided, was believed by many to be ground-breaking, and precedent setting for years to come. What the Supreme Court Justices proclaimed in a closely decided 5-4 vote was that police would not be given the freedom to place a GPS vehicle tracker on a vehilcle without first obtaining permission in the form of a warrant. Basically, the decision stated that police would not be allowed to track or monitor any person. But if it is not acceptable for police to monitor private citizen activity, why is it still okay for businesses to monitor people?
People may enjoy how smart phones like the iPhone make it easy to check emails, social media profiles, play games or a number of other popular features, but smart phones are doing many other things that some may not even be aware of. GPS tracker chips embedded in every cell phone document locational information such as what restaurants a person eats at, what time a parent drops their child off at school, how often a person visits the doctor's office and more. This locational data that is collected through GPS tracking, the same technology no longer allowed to be used by police without a warrant, is used by marketing companies and endless other corporations.
Target, for example, was able to use GPS tracker data from a cellular phone to identify a teenage girl was pregnant before her father did. With this information, Target began sending the teen coupons and sale information on baby products, something that infuriated her father until he was informed of the pregnancy.
How serious is the issue becoming? Well for one, companies such as Verizon Wireless have made modifications to their privacy policies so that they can now monitor what a person searches for on their smart phone, and what places they visit by using locational data from the user's phone. This recorded information is then sold by Verizon to outside companies for one can only hope just marketing purposes, but nothing is for certain.
There are a number of other areas of concern among smart phone users, web surfers and privacy advocates because companies such as Google now document all search by users, Facebook uses family and personal information to directly advertise (while also following everywhere a person goes on the website) and smart phone operating systems are consistently monitoring every location a person visits. Of course, cell phone companies, search engine giants and app makers all say this is a beneficial service that is part of the deal when people use their free search or applications.
All of a sudden police use of GPS tracking systems to monitor potential criminals does not seem all that bad does it?
The problem is that although police use of GPS tracker systems are now closely regulated since the Supreme Court decision, corporate seizing of personal GPS tracker data is completely acceptable, and lots of companies are making a profit from each person's data. Essentially, theft of GPS locational information obtained from cellular phones and via online search is an acceptable practice, making consumer personal and private data a hot commodity. Now, privacy advocates and consumers who feel their privacy rights are being infringed upon must sit by and wait until high courts eventually decide on this theft of personal data via GPS tracking is indeed acceptable... If they address the issue in the very near future, and that is a very big "if".