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Smartphones are quickly becoming more prevalent, even among school children.  As amazing as these devices are, one must take steps to assure that only the data you wish to share is available to prying eyes.

Take, for instance, a picture taken with an iPhone.  Let’s say that your daughter has an iPhone and after school, snaps a photo of herself with her best friend.  Later that day, she uploads it to her Flickr account to share with her friends on Facebook and other social media sites.  If you didn’t know this already, pay close attention: her smartphone may be leading the wrong people right to her by tagging her location in  the photo using GPS coordinates.  ‘

Now, a stranger can use special software to determine exactly where she goes to school just by accessing the photo.  There are even programs that take the photo and convert it to a map, pinpointing the child‘s exact location down to the very room they reside in within their own home.

The solution: assure that your child’s phone has the GPS function turned off.  Each phone is different, but all have this capability.  Before arming your child with such sophisticated technology, parents should research exactly what the phone is capable of doing to ensure the safety of their child.  The parent should also educate their child about the dangers of such technology in the hopes that they will use the phone responsibly and safely.

Article Written by Khristen Foss