If you know the panic of losing your toddler in the grocery store or secretly wonder if your son is skipping piano lessons to visit his friends, you may be interested in the technological fixes for those problems. There are devices available to track all aspects of your child's life, from location to Internet and cell phone usage. Child tracking systems can give you peace of mind and help protect your family.
Step 1
Install a smart door knob. Schlage offers an electronic door knob that your child enters a punch code into to lock and unlock. Whenever the punch code is entered, you receive a text or email message. This can help you ensure your child gets home from school on time and track the flow of traffic in and out of your house. Advanced systems also let you use your Internet-connected cell phone to see a video of the inside of your house from remote locations to find out who is in the house and when.
Step 2
Give your child a GPS-enabled device. There are literally dozens of child-safe GPS tracking devices on the market. From watches to cell phones to key chains to GPS-enabled monitoring boxes, these can be placed on your child, in a back pack or in the glove box of his car. These devices allow you to go online and find out the location of each device. More sophisticated GPS tracking devices allow you to set parameters, such as forbidden locations, and get text or email alerts if the parameters are violated.
Step 3
Install Internet monitoring software. Programs like Net Nanny allow you to track what websites your child visits, and advanced options allow you to read your child's email, IM and chat transcripts. You can also set up blocks or time limits for websites that you want to restrict or limit access to.
Step 4
Install a wireless monitoring device. These are marketed as baby monitors; however, they can be used for kids of any age. They work by streaming live video from a small camera onto a hand-held device the size of a cordless phone. The monitors can also be set up to play a live feed on your television.
Step 5
Track your child's cell phone use with a downloadable child tracking software app. These applications allow you to log on to the Internet and see who your child is talking to. You can also either see who your child sends and receives texts from or read these texts. If your child's phone has Internet access, you can monitor phone Internet usage.
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