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An article on a Dallas, Texas, news site (KDAF-TV) puts an interesting spin on GPS tracking technology. Right now, the Supreme Court is trying to decide whether or not warrantless GPS tracking is illegal. Yet (as the article points out), Americans allow themselves to be tracked regularly without much concern at all. You may even allow the world to track you regularly. How? Social networking sites are the main culprits here.

Think about sites like Foursquare and Facebook. These sites allow users to log into a tracking feature via cell phone. When you “check in” to one of these sites, you are allowing governments, friends, and family members to know where you are at all times. Even though this is a form of warrantless tracking, many people are willing to give up privacy rights in order to use this new technology.

Based upon this fact, why is the Supreme Court trying to decide if warrantless tracking is illegal or not? Could it be because Americans want the right to log in and out of a tracking program freely? The term “free” here may be something of a joke though. Even if you haven’t logged onto Foursquare of Facebook, your smartphone is always tracking you — especially if you allow an app to find your current location.

The truth of the matter is that we’re so wrapped up in technology as a society, most of us would have a hard time living without those social networks and smartphone apps. Sure, these sits and apps cross the privacy line every day, but does anyone really care?

Photo Courtesy of Digitpedia