Email

GPS tracking is rapidly spreading as a tool for businesses and governmental groups to follow their fleets’ movements, with a host of benefits. Fleet tracking can reduce costs by helping managers plan the best routes, manage wasteful practices like long idling times, and keep employees accountable to work while they are on the clock.

It can also increase safety, because someone responsible knows where each driver in the fleet is and can get help to them quickly if they run into trouble. Dormont, a borough of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, has a fleet tracking for its police force. Unfortunately, some questions are being raised about whether it has been used wisely.

With a GPS tracking unit on each of the five patrol cars in the Dormont police department’s fleet, each vehicle’s whereabouts can be monitored in real time. Satellites interact with computers to interpret signals from the devices and show where they are on the Dormont map. The main driving factor behind the decision to track the borough’s police cars was a desire to increase officer safety; an additional benefit is the ability to plan maintenance schedules based on information about mileage and idle time.

Five police sergeants, four desk officers, and the borough’s manager Gino Rizza have access to the GPS system’s monitoring site. Recently, Rizza was asked at a council meeting to account for a log of the hours he had spent watching the site. Councilwoman Joan Hodson presented a report that showed Rizza spent more than 40 hours logged onto the site in the month of April.

She said she felt the time was “excessive” and asked if he were spying on the police. Rizza responded that he often kept the site open on his computer but wasn’t watching it; he denied spying. Hodson said later that she could accept his explanation but still thought the time was excessive. Hodson and Rizza have not gotten along in the past, and she called for his resignation in March.

The issue may soon fade away for Dormont, but it is a reminder of the need for all authorities to be above-board and ethical in their use of information they have access to, including data gathered by GPS. Whether used in the private or in the public sector, GPS tracking should be governed by clear expectations about who has access to that information, what the purpose of the tracking system is, and what it’s uses should be limited to.

Article Written by Kadence Vyra

0 comment(s)

Email

The age old question of who will watch the watchers may have been answered by a new Chinese policy. Government officials in Youyang County, of southwest China’s Chongqing Municipality, are now required to keep 3G mobile phones, equipped with GPS locator technology, on them at all times. The officials will be contacted on these phones to report their location, and if their report is different than the GPS data, they are subject to disciplinary action.

82 officials in Youyang County have already been publicly criticized for failing to report their actual location when questioned. According to a spokesman for the Youyang Commission for Discipline Inspection of the Chinese Communist Party, 20 of the 82 government officials received undisclosed stricter punishments.

Zhang Seng explained to English People’s Daily Online that “We select officials at random, use GPS to track their locations and require them to report their whereabouts by the phone. If they lie, we will punish them with severity.”

The Chinese government used a local telecom company to customize 3G mobile phones with GPS locator systems, specifically for this purpose. The phones are only to be used by the randomly chosen government officials, and are not to be lent or transferred to anyone. If an official that was assigned a GPS locator phone is relocated, he or she must return the phone to the unit, according to Mu Yong, director of the Youyang Inspection Office.

This policy covers 239 government officials, including members from 39 different townships and 106 county departments, according to a document issued by the Youyang Inspection Office. The total cost of this plan costs the Chinese government 1.7 million yuan, or 260,000 U.S. dollars each year. Each GPS-equipped phone costs around 3,000 yuan, or 459 U.S. dollars, which is paid by the government, along with a minimum monthly cost of 342 yuan, or 52 U.S. dollars. Any additional fees are paid by the owner of the phone.

Article Written by Marisa O’Connor

0 comment(s)

Email

By Greg Bartlett

When you call 911, it’s because you need help now. You don’t need assistance in two hours, or even fifteen minutes, you need it immediately, because sometimes just a few minutes can make a huge difference in whether or not you’re alive.

So what happens when you call 911, and the dispatcher has to find out which emergency vehicle is closest to you? What if the dispatcher doesn’t realize there is an ambulance just around the corner, for instance, and instead sends one that’s ten minutes away? Ten minutes might mean that your grandmother’s stroke turns deadly or causes permanent damage. You need help immediately, and the best way for that to occur is if the dispatcher knows exactly where each emergency vehicle is and can send the one closest to you by the fastest route. Cutting off a couple minutes or even thirty seconds can make a huge difference in an emergency call.

GPS monitoring of emergency vehicles would allow dispatchers to be able to know where emergency vehicles – ambulances, fire trucks, or police cars – are before a call is made. With a glance at the screen, the dispatcher can confirm which vehicle is closest and send it to you at once.

Furthermore, GPS monitoring can aid dispatchers and drivers in finding the fastest and most efficient route to an emergency call. Not only will it save fuel, but more efficient driving because of GPS monitoring will also save lives. Every second, every minute is precious in an emergency call, and the shorter the response time, the more likely a life will be saved.

One city which is using GPS tracking to monitor its emergency vehicles is able to see where each vehicle is, whether or not it is turned on, and how fast it is traveling. While the data GPS tracking provides can also be a helpful management tool by allowing the city to see if drivers are wasting time and resources, even more importantly the data permits dispatchers to find the closest appropriate vehicle and monitor it as it responds to the call. In an emergency, you need help at once.

In a city where emergency vehicles are equipped with GPS monitoring, the response time should be almost instant, saving valuable moments in an effort to get aid to you as quickly as possible. GPS allows for immediate emergency response, which can mean the difference between life and death.

0 comment(s)

Email

By Greg Bartlett

The Alzheimer’s Association believes that there are around 5.3 million Americans with Alzheimer’s, 60-70% of which will get lost at some point in time. And unfortunately, getting lost could mean injury or death. If the family is not aware that the elderly patient has wandered off, they may not be able to locate and protect the patient before he or she gets very far and is injured or even killed.

For instance, a 77-year-old Alzheimer’s patient in Maine wandered off in his car. His family alerted police and friends, and eventually a statewide alert was put out for him, but five days later they found his car in a bay. The next day, they found his body. In West Virginia, an 89-year-old man wandered off and was found, still alive but dehydrated, two days later.

When an Alzheimer’s patient is lost, it is a frightening time for both the patient and the family. Friends and community members may join in the search for the missing patient, but if the patient isn’t found quickly, he or she may die. GPS monitoring can help family members keep track of loved ones with Alzheimer’s and protect them from danger.
For instance, say your grandfather has Alzheimer’s and lives in a retirement community. You have a GPS tracking device in his car as well as one that he wears, just in case he wanders off on foot. If he does start wandering, you’d be alerted by a text message or phone call the moment he leaves the predetermined boundaries you set, probably the area of the retirement community.

The GPS monitoring device will continue to pinpoint your grandfather’s precise location, permitting you to find him quickly before he is injured or falls into the lake near the retirement community. You’ll be able to follow every movement your grandfather takes. Instead of having to organize a neighborhood-wide or state-wide search, you can know precisely where your grandfather is.

GPS monitoring can save the lives of Alzheimer’s patients by allowing family and friends to monitor their whereabouts and be alerted if the patient starts wandering. Rather than looking for the patient for days, you’ll be able to find your missing loved one within minutes and return him or her to safety. Quickly locating an Alzheimer’s patient can save a life, and with GPS monitoring, it’s possible to do without a search party.

0 comment(s)

Email

By Greg Bartlett

You’ve had suspicions for months now that your spouse is not faithful. You may have picked up on little hints, or just have a ‘gut feeling’ that something is not right. You can’t prove anything, though, and sometimes you do wonder if it’s all in your head. It’s beginning to drive you crazy. You want an answer. You want to know the truth: is your spouse faithful or not?

One Missouri woman, married to her husband for 18 years, became suspicious that he was cheating, but she had no proof of infidelity. No proof, that is, until she rented a GPS monitoring device to track her husband’s movements. Since GPS devices tend to be small, it was easy to hide it in his car and then to follow the car’s movements.

GPS monitoring told her exactly where the car went, what stops it made, how long the car was at each stop, and what the car’s speed was. That information allowed her to verify her suspicions within a couple of days, giving her the proof she needed to confront her husband with his infidelity. He denied the affair at first until she showed him the evidence. Their marriage of 18 years ended in a divorce, but the woman was thankful for the GPS tracking device. It gave her peace of mind by providing her with the answers she needed and revealing the truth.

Another woman used GPS tracking to discover that her husband was not at the hotel he claimed he was, but he was rather at his secretary’s house. Since GPS vehicle tracking allows individuals to find the precise location of the car at any time, discovering the car’s (and thus the husband’s) true whereabouts is as simple as zooming in to the actual building where the vehicle is parked.

GPS information can be surprising. One man, suspicious that his wife of 20 years was having an affair, put a GPS device on her car. The GPS device instead proved that she wasn’t cheating on him. GPS monitoring told one woman that her husband was regularly visiting a younger woman. When confronted, however, her husband of 30 years admitted that the woman was his daughter from a previous relationship.

Sometimes all you want to do is have the answers. Is your spouse really faithful or not? GPS monitoring can tell you the truth, providing you with the answers you need and giving you peace of mind.

0 comment(s)

Email

By Greg Bartlett

It seems like every week in the news there’s another story about someone who was killed by a former boyfriend or husband, or sometimes a girlfriend or wife. Many times victims even had an order of protection or a restraining order filed against their ex, but a piece of paper often won’t stop the offender.

Back in 2008, Cindy Bischof was shot to death by her ex-boyfriend, Michael Giroux. He had violated the order of protection she had taken against him at least two times, and even though he spent some time in jail for the second occasion, he shot her after he was released and then killed himself. As is often the case, the order of protection escalated the violence rather than stopped it.

In Indianapolis, 3 women were killed within the last few months by their husbands or ex-husbands, all of which had protective orders filed against them. Another woman reports feeling fearful for over a year because her former husband had been stalking her despite her order of protection.

Pieces of paper alone, such as orders of protection and restraining orders, can’t protect the victim. Recently, advocates have encouraged the use of GPS monitoring to help ensure the safety of domestic violence victims. But can these electronics really do the job?

Evidence indicates that they can at least help. No, GPS monitoring cannot actually stop an offender from killing someone, but it can keep track of the offender’s location at all times. If the offender goes within certain areas, such as the victim’s workplace or neighborhood, both police and the victim will be alerted. Police can pick up the offender for entering restricted areas, and since the victim is aware that the offender is in the area, she can take precautionary measures to ensure that he doesn’t find her.

Giving a domestic violence victim safety and security involves more than a piece of paper. GPS monitoring allows the victim to be aware if the offender is in the area and to have the opportunity to escape. It will also alert police if the offender is attempting to threaten the victim by entering restricted areas.

While GPS monitoring cannot physically stop a domestic violence offender, it can protect victims and provide them with a layer of security that an order of protection doesn’t have. For some domestic violence victims, it may even be the difference between life and death.

0 comment(s)

Email

By Greg Bartlett

It might have taken a few years, but police in Arizona did eventually find the missing front-end loader which was stolen in 2005. They weren’t actually looking for it when they found it. They were tracking down a different piece of stolen equipment from another company.

In late June, a tractor was stolen from a construction site. Since the tractor had GPS monitoring installed, police were able to locate the tractor, recover it and return it to its owner, and arrest the thieves. But their investigation took a happy turn for another company when during the investigation police found the stolen front-end loader. Since the front-end loader is worth about $80,000-$100,000, the rental company was probably thrilled – although surprised – to get its equipment back after so many years.

GPS monitoring companies have been able to recover many stolen items that are being tracked with GPS devices. Construction companies have had expensive equipment returned, company fleets have recovered vehicles, vehicles and boats have been given back to their owners, and possessions such as TVs and furniture have been located and recovered with the help of GPS tracking.

Since GPS monitoring can track any item and discover its precise location, allowing owners or police to monitor and locate an item, GPS is a prime choice for expensive equipment which attracts thieves. The GPS device can be small enough that a thief will not easily discover and remove it, and the owner can help police find the stolen item quickly. Furthermore, GPS devices often can be set up so that they will even notify the owner with an email, text message, or phone call if the tracked item leaves certain boundaries or is driven during certain times of day.

If a construction company’s tractor is driven outside the construction area or is moved during non-working hours, the company can be instantly alerted and send police after the stolen vehicle.

Sometimes, as in the case in Arizona, tracking a vehicle or piece of equipment may even lead to the discovery of more stolen items.

So there is a possibility that a thief will go after similar items which are equipped with GPS and that police will find your equipment as well even without GPS, but installing a GPS device on your equipment is much more reliable.

GPS monitoring is an excellent way to help protect vehicles and expensive equipment and may even help capture thieves and recover more stolen merchandise.

0 comment(s)

Email

By Greg Bartlett

For safety reasons, some offenders can’t be released into the community. Maybe it’s because they’re sociopaths and have to stay locked inside a secure facility to ensure that they don’t return to their crimes, or maybe it’s because they’re mentally unstable and it’s impossible to predict what they’ll do. No matter why an offender stays inside a facility rather than in the community, authorities need to be able to make sure that the offender stays where he or she is supposed to stay.

But what happens when an offender escapes? Recently an offender who was mental health care patient escaped and, while running away, killed an elderly man in his home. Secure facilities do everything possible to ensure that an inmate or patient won’t escape, but sometimes it does happen, and the results can be deadly.

GPS monitoring can track an offender’s location at all times. It has already become popular with law enforcement officials when an offender is released into the community on probation or parole, but it could also be beneficial for inmates and patients.

Some mental health patients who are also offenders and are being held in secure facilities in London are going to be tracked with GPS monitoring. Officials are concerned with the safety of the community in case a patent escapes, and believe that GPS tracking is the best way to ensure that, if an offender does manage to slip outside the grounds, officials can be alerted at once and can locate the offender.

If, for instance, a patient manages to escape, the GPS monitoring device can alert officials the moment he or she goes outside the facility’s grounds. Authorities will be able to determine the precise location of the offender and to find him or her through the GPS device. Once the escaped offender is located, it won’t take long to find him or her and return to the facility – before anyone in the community is injured.

GPS tracking may be especially helpful for offenders who are permitted to wander on the grounds or to visit in the community, but it can also be helpful to track any offender whom authorities feel is at risk. GPS monitoring can give authorities and the community peace of mind because they know that, if the offender does escape, the facility’s authorities will be instantly alerted, will know where to find the escapee, and the offender will be quickly returned to the facility.

0 comment(s)

Email

By Greg Bartlett

Last week, one of our friends was the victim of a domestic violence incident. Her husband was arrested, but she is fearful that he will be released on bail or, after his sentence, on probation or parole. She has a good reason to be concerned – many domestic violence offenders come back to injure or even kill the victim.

Protecting victims and the community often demands that offenders of certain crimes, such as domestic violence, robbery, sex offenses, and larceny, be kept away from the victims and out of the community. Victims don’t want to see the offender come back to injure them again, and the community doesn’t want the offender to harm its inhabitants and steal cars, electronics, and other possessions.

But on the other hand, some offenders could be released on bail, probation, or parole, thus decreasing the prison population and saving taxpayers money, and also allowing the offender to return to work or find work to help pay child support or other expenses or fines that the victim needs.

Thankfully, there is a way to release some prisoners while still protecting the victim and community. GPS monitoring allows police to watch released offenders in real time, keeping track of every move and noticing any wrong behavior.

For instance, GPS monitoring will notify police by text message, phone call, or email when an offender goes outside a predetermined area or enters a forbidden area. An offender may be restricted to just his house and work, for instance, while forbidden to go to his ex-wife’s house. If he visits her anyway, police will be notified immediately and the victim can often be alerted, too, thus allowing her to take necessary precautions.

Furthermore, because GPS monitoring tracks offenders constantly, it will allow police to see if a released offender is in the area when a crime is committed. So if a car thief is released on probation and police see that the thief was in a particular neighborhood when a car was stolen, they can investigate further to see if the car thief really was responsible. On the other hand, the monitoring also allows police to rule out a released offender if the GPS data shows that he or she was in another location entirely from the crime area.

Protecting individuals is important to law enforcement officials, but releasing certain offenders under GPS monitoring allows police to permit the offender’s freedom while still ensuring the safety of the victims and community.

0 comment(s)

Email

By Greg Bartlett

The 911 dispatchers just received a call. There’s a fire on the outskirts of town. Now the dispatchers have to determine which fire truck is closest to the fire and alert it to head out immediately. But there’s another call, this time an accident that requires a least one ambulance. Dispatchers must locate the nearest ambulance and get it there right away if the victim’s life is to be saved. And yet another call, a bank robbery. Which police officers are closest to the bank and could arrive in time to stop the robbers?

In emergency calls, a minute could mean the difference between life and death. So every minute between a 911 call and the time the emergency vehicle arrives on scene is vital. With GPS monitoring, dispatchers no longer have to guess about which vehicle is closest – they can know.

And emergency response personnel no longer have to rely on memory to find the fastest route to an emergency site – the GPS device will find it for them.

A number of cities are beginning to use GPS monitoring to keep track of emergency vehicles so that dispatchers can send the closest vehicle, cutting down on response time and thus saving lives. Dispatchers can monitor emergency vehicles in real time, and when a call comes in, it only takes a moment to locate the nearest appropriate vehicle. Knowing the precise location of each emergency vehicle also allows dispatchers and drivers to find the fastest way to the emergency site.

GPS tracking has become popular with police departments, who recognize that GPS can provide safety for their officers, monitoring them even while they are in dangerous situations, and also help decrease response time to emergency calls.

One fire department in Georgia uses GPS monitoring on their vehicles and on their fire hydrants. When a fire is reported, fire fighters can find the fastest way to the site, but they can also know exactly where the nearest active hydrant is before they arrive.

Using the GPS devices has already increased efficiency and cut down on response time and the time it takes to hook up to a hydrant.

Decreasing the response time to a 911 call is critical and can save lives. If emergency vehicles are equipped with GPS monitoring, dispatchers can help fire trucks reach the fire faster, ambulances to arrive at the accident scene within minutes, and patrol cars to show up in time to capture the bank robbers.

0 comment(s)