By Tony Hallett, 26 November 2003 15:50
NEWS Several web-based services have been announced this week that allow the tracking of mobile phones across the UK. The idea is that keeping tabs on a phone invariably allows someone to keep tabs on its owner, whether that's a teenage child out for the evening or a delivery driver late for his next pick-up.
Mapaphone marries tracking with online maps at www.mapminder.co.uk that also feature hotels, restaurants and other places of interest. The maps alone are of a high quality.
Meanwhile directory enquiries stalwart 192.com has brought out Phone Track, which is billed as "a simpler, more portable and lower cost alternative to GPS satellite location systems".
Both systems rely on triangulating positions using the GSM cellular network of operators O2, Orange, T-Mobile and Vodafone.
Such offerings have been talked about for some time - often alongside tabloid hype of 'monitoring where any mobile phone user is' - but the providers claim to have covered off legal loopholes.
For example, employers must get written permission from employees they wish to monitor, consent which is then double checked via a text message to the phone in question in Mapaphone's case.
While the 192.com service looks to the consumer as much as the business user - one piece of advertising reads: "Is your daughter still at her friends house? Because the service is discreet she will not be embarrassed with her peers thinking you are checking up on her" - Mapaphone is firmly in the business space.
It integrates with Outlook contact details and there are group facilities for teams in the field and web-to-mobile text messaging, at 7p each SMS, for contacting colleagues.
Mapaphone costs £10 per phone per month, including five free 'polls' per month (20p each thereafter) and mapminder.co.uk separately costs £2.95 per month.
192.com's offering costs £5 per month plus VAT, including 10 free polls, with a minimum six-month sign-up and extra credits for polls at 20-50p each.
Comments
There are 12 comments. Join the discussion
1. John Lucas
Both systems rely on triangulating positions using the GSM cellular network of operators O2, Orange, T-Mobile and Vodafone.
Are you sure about this? I don't believe ANY of the operators are offering triangulation.
2. Jaap Groot
Nothing new. Check www.fleetonline.net allready over 5.000 registered users in the UK.
3. anonymous
Map a Mobile is the same but much cheaper.
4. Steven Abrams
What a great idea. It could save me a fortune. If I put it on the kids phones and they would switch them off to avoid being tracked. At least while their phones are off they won't be making so many calls, which in turn means smaller bills.
5. emma hardcastle
Hi - I work for Mapminder. Just to be clear the cost of setting up a phone on mapaphone is £5 per phone per YEAR, not £10 per month as quoted in the article.
thanks
6. emma hardcastle
RE triangulation. I work for Mapminder who are offering this service via mapaphone.
Its worth clarifying what mobile operators are offering us and other companies delivering mobile tracking services. They pass across the longitude and latitude for the "cell ID" or base station that the phone is attched to, plus a degree of accuracy as a radius. Usually they can say a phone user is within 300-600 metres of a base station. Out tests in central London show 300m to be about the best we can get.
7. jack smith
I signed up with www.traceamobile.com and find it great. The web site is easier to navigate than rival services aand only costs £1 a phone!
8. Dr G Ibbon
I find such a service is not generally available at www.drgibbon.com. However, the great shopping savings to be made more than make up for it!
Cheers.
9. anonymous
This smacks too much of big brother to me. I wouldn't have a employer's mobile phone if they were able to track my every movement. This service might be useful for parents who have to look after children but used in a work context, it raises serious questions about employees'liberties.
10. Jason Gery
Locate Mobiles.com only costs £1 a phone. The customer support was also very good!
11. Mike
My employer said we had to agree to being tracked. The system is not accurate where I live, it tracked me 12KM away. My employer then tried to sack me over this wrong information on my location. The system is open to abuse by employers.
12. anonymous
Traceamobile.co.uk is offering improved accuracy