Latest news with #SnapMap
Yahoo
09-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Snapchat Partners with American Eagle on New Snap Map Promotion Type
This story was originally published on Social Media Today. To receive daily news and insights, subscribe to our free daily Social Media Today newsletter. American Eagle has partnered with Snapchat on a new advertising activation, which will see all American Eagle stores highlighted on the Snap Map, in order to help drive shopping behaviors in the back-to-school period. As you can see in this example, the activation, a first of its kind for Snapchat, will highlight American Eagle stores with a special emoji on the Snap Map. And when tapped, a new listing will be displayed, which includes a quick link to its Summer arrivals, helping to guide shopping behaviors. As explained by Snap: 'With over 95% of Snapchatters planning to shop in-store for back-to-school this year, American Eagle is teaming up with Snapchat to meet students where they're already shopping, connecting, and planning their next move - on Snap Map! Starting today, over 800 American Eagle retail locations across the US will be featured as Promoted Places on Snap Map.' The custom store listings will include all of the usual Snap Map store info, along with additional links: 'When Snapchatters check out the American Eagle Promoted Places on Snap Map, they can learn more about the location, check out Stories and Spotlight content from American Eagle, creators, and other Snapchatters, and even click to shop on for a seamless online shopping experience. American Eagle is also launching the AE Jeans Try-on Haul Lens available in the Lens Carousel and their Public Profile.' So it's an all-encompassing display of American Eagle Snap content, which will make it easier for users to get more info, and even shop, direct from the Snap Map. It could be a valuable offering, a more high-end one, aimed at bigger brands, but a valuable connector for those trying to reach younger shoppers. Indeed, Snapchat says that 400 million Snapchatters use Snap Map monthly, and this new activation could help to build brand loyalty, and drive real-world foot traffic via this display. It's an interesting experiment, and it'll be interesting to see what sort of engagement the activation drives for American Eagle, both as a consideration for this specific promotion, and for the potential value of Snap Map as an advertising surface. It may well be a good driver of traffic. You can read more about Snap's American Eagle activation here. Recommended Reading Snapchat Influencers Are More Likely To Drive Purchase Results, Report Finds Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
31-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
This Latest Teen Trend Has Experts Feeling Very Uneasy, And It Makes Sense Why
Trends change, technology advances, yet teenagers always seem to stay the same. They find new ways to maintain social relevance — often by doing things older generations don't understand. (Don't believe me? Just try to guess what any of their slang terms mean.) One of the latest teen trends is something that might raise a few eyebrows among parents, due to safety and privacy concerns: location tracking. Although teens crave independence from their parents, they are voluntarily sharing their real-time whereabouts with their friends. Popular phone tracking app Life360 recently found that Gen Z is 70% more likely than any other age group to share their location with friends. And 94% of Gen Z surveyed said their lives benefit from location sharing. In May 2025, Snapchat announced that its location-sharing Snap Map has more than 400 million monthly active users, per TechCrunch. This influences other social media platforms, as Instagram is reportedly working on a similar Friend Map to allow users to see their friends' locations. Many adults, including Leigh McInnis, the executive director of Newport Healthcare, may feel wary about this trend; however, McInnis keeps an open mind. 'While my immediate instinct is related to the protection of privacy and boundaries,' she told HuffPost, 'I realize that this impulse is likely more related to my generational identity and discomfort with technology and tracking than the social needs and preferences of today's teens and young adults.' McInnis added, 'I think that it is important to explore the function of a behavior before judging it or intervening in it.' Not sure what to think about it — or how to ensure your teen uses an app like this safely? Keep reading for expert-backed opinions to help you understand why your teens might like sharing their location, as well as tips on setting boundaries and red flags to look for. Location Sharing Isn't Necessarily New 'Many of the teens I work with — including my own daughter — share their location with their friends,' said Dr. Cameron Caswell, adolescent psychologist, host of Parenting Teens with Dr. Cam podcast, and parent of a teen. 'It's a little about safety, but mostly 'because it's just fun to see what each other is doing.'' Back in the olden days (circa 2006), teens would update their Myspace status to let you know what they were up to. Later, they 'checked in' to places on Foursquare and Facebook, shared real-time updates on Snapchat and Instagram stories, and tweeted every detail of their lives. Now, they use Snapchat's Snap Map, Life360, or Apple's location sharing to share with their friends everywhere they are in real time. 'This isn't new,' Caswell said. 'In a world where nearly everything is shared, this doesn't feel invasive to teens — it feels normal. It's just another way they stay looped into each other's lives.' Teens also use apps like this to track their parents, according to Caswell, whose own daughter will text her if she sees her mom is at Ulta and ask for lip gloss. 'For many teens, location sharing is about connection and a sense of safety,' Caswell explained. 'It's their way of saying, 'You're in my circle' and 'I've got your back.'' Understanding The Risks Even though sharing your location with friends might be popular, it doesn't come without consequences. Cheryl Groskopf, an anxiety, trauma, and attachment therapist based in Los Angeles, sees teens sharing their locations as a way 'to manage anxiety, track social dynamics and feel less alone.' 'There's comfort in knowing where your people are, especially in a world where teens constantly feel like they could get left out, replaced, or excluded,' she said. 'But that comfort is fragile — it relies on constant access (which leaves their nervous system hypervigilant to feeling 'left out').' 'If you're checking someone's location because you don't trust what they're telling you — or because they don't trust you — then it's already crossed into a control dynamic,' Groskopf said. In her practice, she's seen teens 'spiral' when they spot their friend at a party they weren't invited to, or 'because someone didn't respond fast enough, but 'was clearly at home.'' She explained, 'It becomes a setup for overthinking, panic, and social surveillance.' 'Teens shouldn't use location sharing when it's being used to avoid rejection, manage someone else's anxiety, or prove loyalty,' she added. McInnis said, 'Teens sharing their location and having their friends track them could harm their mental health.' Constantly seeing (and comparing) your friends' social activities 'can lead to feelings of inadequacy,' she added. Caswell agreed. 'Location sharing can intensify FOMO (fear of missing out) and social exclusion,' she said. 'Seeing a group of friends hanging out without them — even unintentionally — can make them feel lonelier and more left out.' In addition to these emotional risks, there are physical risks, too. Like a teen's location data being available to someone who might wish them harm. 'In the wrong hands, it can make [teens] more vulnerable to stalking, harassment or even predatory behavior, especially if they are in controlling relationships,' Caswell said. There's A Gender Gap Teen girls may be more likely to use location sharing as a way to feel safer. According to the Life360 survey, 70% of Gen Z women believe their physical well-being benefits from location sharing. In the field, our experts also found that females were more likely to do this. Caswell said that 'mostly girls' will openly share their location with friends, 'both for fun and because it makes them feel safer knowing someone always knows where they are.' However, this sense of safety is a double-edged sword, as it can 'increase the risk of stalking, harassment, or even sexual violence,' Caswell said. 'Especially when their location is shared with the wrong person, which is often someone they know and trust.' Groskopf warns of the dangers girls and femme teens may experience when their use of location-sharing is weaponized against them. 'It can easily turn into emotional surveillance disguised as closeness,' she explained. (For example, a friend or partner telling them, 'If you trust me, you'll let me see where you are.') 'I see these kinds of patterns play out in high-control dynamics — friends or partners checking locations not to stay safe, but to manage anxiety, jealousy, or power,' Groskopf said. 'And girls are way more likely to internalize that and comply, even when it feels off. They're more likely to be conditioned to avoid conflict, manage other people's emotions, and keep the peace — even if that means overriding their own boundaries.' That's why teaching your kids how to set boundaries, in real life and online, is important. Setting Boundaries Teaching your teen how to handle location-sharing in a safe way starts with conversations around consent and the ability to say no. When asked if there is a safe way for teens to share their locations, Groskopf said, 'Only if there's real consent, boundaries, and the freedom to opt out without punishment.' In this case, the punishment could be feeling guilt-tripped or rejected by a friend. 'That means not just technically having the option to stop sharing, but knowing you won't be guilted, shut out, or shamed if you do,' Groskopf continued. 'A parent saying, 'I want to know where you are in case of emergency' is one thing. A friend saying, 'Why'd you turn off your location?' with passive-aggressive silence afterward is something else entirely.' She added, 'Safe tracking only works when it's not being weaponized to regulate someone else's fear, jealousy, or insecurity.' How To Talk To Your Teen About Location Sharing Start the conversation with curiosity, not criticism, Caswell said. 'Instead of banning [location sharing], I recommend walking through privacy settings together and having calm conversations about why they're sharing in the first place,' she said. 'Is it for safety? To feel connected to their bestie? Because they feel pressured to? Helping teens understand why they are doing it makes location sharing a lot safer and more intentional.' From there, encourage your teen to only share their location with 'a small, trusted circle of close friends or family,' and check in on this list frequently. 'One mom I worked with told me her daughter was shocked to find an ex-boyfriend still had access to her location,' Caswell said. 'Of course, that explained why he kept 'randomly' showing up wherever she was. Instead of freaking out, the mom used it as an opportunity to talk with her daughter about how to use tech more safely moving forward.' It's always a good idea to talk with your teens about how to stay safe online and set boundaries around privacy with their friends. But keep in mind, this starts at home. 'Let your teen say no to you sometimes,' Caswell suggested. 'Practicing boundaries with someone safe gives them the confidence to do it with someone who isn't,' she added. 'That's how they build real-world safety skills — not just digital ones.' This article originally appeared on HuffPost.
Yahoo
30-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Gen Z's Latest Obsession Might Come At A Serious Cost To Their Mental Health (And Safety)
Trends change, technology advances, yet teenagers always seem to stay the same. They find new ways to maintain social relevance — often by doing things older generations don't understand. (Don't believe me? Just try to guess what any of their slang terms mean.) One of the latest teen trends is something that might raise a few eyebrows among parents, due to safety and privacy concerns: location tracking. Although teens crave independence from their parents, they are voluntarily sharing their real-time whereabouts with their friends. Popular phone tracking app Life360 recently found that Gen Z is 70% more likely than any other age group to share their location with friends. And 94% of Gen Z surveyed said their lives benefit from location sharing. In May 2025, Snapchat announced that its location-sharing Snap Map has more than 400 million monthly active users, per TechCrunch. This influences other social media platforms, as Instagram is reportedly working on a similar Friend Map to allow users to see their friends' locations. Many adults, including Leigh McInnis, the executive director of Newport Healthcare, may feel wary about this trend; however, McInnis keeps an open mind. 'While my immediate instinct is related to the protection of privacy and boundaries,' she told HuffPost, 'I realize that this impulse is likely more related to my generational identity and discomfort with technology and tracking than the social needs and preferences of today's teens and young adults.' McInnis added, 'I think that it is important to explore the function of a behavior before judging it or intervening in it.' Not sure what to think about it — or how to ensure your teen uses an app like this safely? Keep reading for expert-backed opinions to help you understand why your teens might like sharing their location, as well as tips on setting boundaries and red flags to look for. Location Sharing Isn't Necessarily New 'Many of the teens I work with — including my own daughter — share their location with their friends,' said Dr. Cameron Caswell, adolescent psychologist, host of Parenting Teens with Dr. Cam podcast, and parent of a teen. 'It's a little about safety, but mostly 'because it's just fun to see what each other is doing.'' Back in the olden days (circa 2006), teens would update their Myspace status to let you know what they were up to. Later, they 'checked in' to places on Foursquare and Facebook, shared real-time updates on Snapchat and Instagram stories, and tweeted every detail of their lives. Now, they use Snapchat's Snap Map, Life360, or Apple's location sharing to share with their friends everywhere they are in real time. 'This isn't new,' Caswell said. 'In a world where nearly everything is shared, this doesn't feel invasive to teens — it feels normal. It's just another way they stay looped into each other's lives.' Teens also use apps like this to track their parents, according to Caswell, whose own daughter will text her if she sees her mom is at Ulta and ask for lip gloss. 'For many teens, location sharing is about connection and a sense of safety,' Caswell explained. 'It's their way of saying, 'You're in my circle' and 'I've got your back.'' Understanding The Risks Even though sharing your location with friends might be popular, it doesn't come without consequences. Cheryl Groskopf, an anxiety, trauma, and attachment therapist based in Los Angeles, sees teens sharing their locations as a way 'to manage anxiety, track social dynamics and feel less alone.' 'There's comfort in knowing where your people are, especially in a world where teens constantly feel like they could get left out, replaced, or excluded,' she said. 'But that comfort is fragile — it relies on constant access (which leaves their nervous system hypervigilant to feeling 'left out').' 'If you're checking someone's location because you don't trust what they're telling you — or because they don't trust you — then it's already crossed into a control dynamic,' Groskopf said. In her practice, she's seen teens 'spiral' when they spot their friend at a party they weren't invited to, or 'because someone didn't respond fast enough, but 'was clearly at home.'' She explained, 'It becomes a setup for overthinking, panic, and social surveillance.' 'Teens shouldn't use location sharing when it's being used to avoid rejection, manage someone else's anxiety, or prove loyalty,' she added. McInnis said, 'Teens sharing their location and having their friends track them could harm their mental health.' Constantly seeing (and comparing) your friends' social activities 'can lead to feelings of inadequacy,' she added. Caswell agreed. 'Location sharing can intensify FOMO (fear of missing out) and social exclusion,' she said. 'Seeing a group of friends hanging out without them — even unintentionally — can make them feel lonelier and more left out.' In addition to these emotional risks, there are physical risks, too. Like a teen's location data being available to someone who might wish them harm. 'In the wrong hands, it can make [teens] more vulnerable to stalking, harassment or even predatory behavior, especially if they are in controlling relationships,' Caswell said. There's A Gender Gap Teen girls may be more likely to use location sharing as a way to feel safer. According to the Life360 survey, 70% of Gen Z women believe their physical well-being benefits from location sharing. In the field, our experts also found that females were more likely to do this. Caswell said that 'mostly girls' will openly share their location with friends, 'both for fun and because it makes them feel safer knowing someone always knows where they are.' However, this sense of safety is a double-edged sword, as it can 'increase the risk of stalking, harassment, or even sexual violence,' Caswell said. 'Especially when their location is shared with the wrong person, which is often someone they know and trust.' Groskopf warns of the dangers girls and femme teens may experience when their use of location-sharing is weaponized against them. 'It can easily turn into emotional surveillance disguised as closeness,' she explained. (For example, a friend or partner telling them, 'If you trust me, you'll let me see where you are.') 'I see these kinds of patterns play out in high-control dynamics — friends or partners checking locations not to stay safe, but to manage anxiety, jealousy, or power,' Groskopf said. 'And girls are way more likely to internalize that and comply, even when it feels off. They're more likely to be conditioned to avoid conflict, manage other people's emotions, and keep the peace — even if that means overriding their own boundaries.' That's why teaching your kids how to set boundaries, in real life and online, is important. Setting Boundaries Teaching your teen how to handle location-sharing in a safe way starts with conversations around consent and the ability to say no. When asked if there is a safe way for teens to share their locations, Groskopf said, 'Only if there's real consent, boundaries, and the freedom to opt out without punishment.' In this case, the punishment could be feeling guilt-tripped or rejected by a friend. 'That means not just technically having the option to stop sharing, but knowing you won't be guilted, shut out, or shamed if you do,' Groskopf continued. 'A parent saying, 'I want to know where you are in case of emergency' is one thing. A friend saying, 'Why'd you turn off your location?' with passive-aggressive silence afterward is something else entirely.' She added, 'Safe tracking only works when it's not being weaponized to regulate someone else's fear, jealousy, or insecurity.' How To Talk To Your Teen About Location Sharing Start the conversation with curiosity, not criticism, Caswell said. 'Instead of banning [location sharing], I recommend walking through privacy settings together and having calm conversations about why they're sharing in the first place,' she said. 'Is it for safety? To feel connected to their bestie? Because they feel pressured to? Helping teens understand why they are doing it makes location sharing a lot safer and more intentional.' From there, encourage your teen to only share their location with 'a small, trusted circle of close friends or family,' and check in on this list frequently. 'One mom I worked with told me her daughter was shocked to find an ex-boyfriend still had access to her location,' Caswell said. 'Of course, that explained why he kept 'randomly' showing up wherever she was. Instead of freaking out, the mom used it as an opportunity to talk with her daughter about how to use tech more safely moving forward.' It's always a good idea to talk with your teens about how to stay safe online and set boundaries around privacy with their friends. But keep in mind, this starts at home. 'Let your teen say no to you sometimes,' Caswell suggested. 'Practicing boundaries with someone safe gives them the confidence to do it with someone who isn't,' she added. 'That's how they build real-world safety skills — not just digital ones.' This article originally appeared on HuffPost.
Buzz Feed
30-05-2025
- Buzz Feed
What Experts Think About Gen Z Sharing Their Location
Trends change, technology advances, yet teenagers always seem to stay the same. They find new ways to maintain social relevance — often by doing things older generations don't understand. (Don't believe me? Just try to guess what any of their slang terms mean.) One of the latest teen trends is something that might raise a few eyebrows among parents, due to safety and privacy concerns: location tracking. Although teens crave independence from their parents, they are voluntarily sharing their real-time whereabouts with their friends. Popular phone tracking app Life360 recently found that Gen Z is 70% more likely than any other age group to share their location with friends. And 94% of Gen Z surveyed said their lives benefit from location sharing. In May 2025, Snapchat announced that its location-sharing Snap Map has more than 400 million monthly active users, per TechCrunch. This influences other social media platforms, as Instagram is reportedly working on a similar Friend Map to allow users to see their friends' locations. Many adults, including Leigh McInnis, the executive director of Newport Healthcare, may feel wary about this trend; however, McInnis keeps an open mind. 'While my immediate instinct is related to the protection of privacy and boundaries,' she told HuffPost, 'I realize that this impulse is likely more related to my generational identity and discomfort with technology and tracking than the social needs and preferences of today's teens and young adults.' McInnis added, 'I think that it is important to explore the function of a behavior before judging it or intervening in it.' Not sure what to think about it — or how to ensure your teen uses an app like this safely? Keep reading for expert-backed opinions to help you understand why your teens might like sharing their location, as well as tips on setting boundaries and red flags to look for. 'Many of the teens I work with — including my own daughter — share their location with their friends,' said Dr. Cameron Caswell, adolescent psychologist, host of Parenting Teens with Dr. Cam podcast, and parent of a teen. 'It's a little about safety, but mostly 'because it's just fun to see what each other is doing.'' Back in the olden days (circa 2006), teens would update their Myspace status to let you know what they were up to. Later, they 'checked in' to places on Foursquare and Facebook, shared real-time updates on Snapchat and Instagram stories, and tweeted every detail of their lives. Now, they use Snapchat's Snap Map, Life360, or Apple's location sharing to share with their friends everywhere they are in real time. 'This isn't new,' Caswell said. 'In a world where nearly everything is shared, this doesn't feel invasive to teens — it feels normal. It's just another way they stay looped into each other's lives.' Teens also use apps like this to track their parents, according to Caswell, whose own daughter will text her if she sees her mom is at Ulta and ask for lip gloss. 'For many teens, location sharing is about connection and a sense of safety,' Caswell explained. 'It's their way of saying, 'You're in my circle' and 'I've got your back.'' Even though sharing your location with friends might be popular, it doesn't come without consequences. Cheryl Groskopf, an anxiety, trauma, and attachment therapist based in Los Angeles, sees teens sharing their locations as a way 'to manage anxiety, track social dynamics and feel less alone.' 'There's comfort in knowing where your people are, especially in a world where teens constantly feel like they could get left out, replaced, or excluded,' she said. 'But that comfort is fragile — it relies on constant access (which leaves their nervous system hypervigilant to feeling 'left out').' 'If you're checking someone's location because you don't trust what they're telling you — or because they don't trust you — then it's already crossed into a control dynamic,' Groskopf said. In her practice, she's seen teens 'spiral' when they spot their friend at a party they weren't invited to, or 'because someone didn't respond fast enough, but 'was clearly at home.'' She explained, 'It becomes a setup for overthinking, panic, and social surveillance.' 'Teens shouldn't use location sharing when it's being used to avoid rejection, manage someone else's anxiety, or prove loyalty,' she added. McInnis said, 'Teens sharing their location and having their friends track them could harm their mental health.' Constantly seeing (and comparing) your friends' social activities 'can lead to feelings of inadequacy,' she added. Caswell agreed. 'Location sharing can intensify FOMO (fear of missing out) and social exclusion,' she said. 'Seeing a group of friends hanging out without them — even unintentionally — can make them feel lonelier and more left out.' In addition to these emotional risks, there are physical risks, too. Like a teen's location data being available to someone who might wish them harm. 'In the wrong hands, it can make [teens] more vulnerable to stalking, harassment or even predatory behavior, especially if they are in controlling relationships,' Caswell said. There's A Gender Gap Teen girls may be more likely to use location sharing as a way to feel safer. According to the Life360 survey, 70% of Gen Z women believe their physical well-being benefits from location sharing. In the field, our experts also found that females were more likely to do this. Caswell said that 'mostly girls' will openly share their location with friends, 'both for fun and because it makes them feel safer knowing someone always knows where they are.' However, this sense of safety is a double-edged sword, as it can 'increase the risk of stalking, harassment, or even sexual violence,' Caswell said. 'Especially when their location is shared with the wrong person, which is often someone they know and trust.' Groskopf warns of the dangers girls and femme teens may experience when their use of location-sharing is weaponized against them. 'It can easily turn into emotional surveillance disguised as closeness,' she explained. (For example, a friend or partner telling them, 'If you trust me, you'll let me see where you are.') 'I see these kinds of patterns play out in high-control dynamics — friends or partners checking locations not to stay safe, but to manage anxiety, jealousy, or power,' Groskopf said. 'And girls are way more likely to internalize that and comply, even when it feels off. They're more likely to be conditioned to avoid conflict, manage other people's emotions, and keep the peace — even if that means overriding their own boundaries.' That's why teaching your kids how to set boundaries, in real life and online, is important. Setting Boundaries Teaching your teen how to handle location-sharing in a safe way starts with conversations around consent and the ability to say no. When asked if there is a safe way for teens to share their locations, Groskopf said, 'Only if there's real consent, boundaries, and the freedom to opt out without punishment.' In this case, the punishment could be feeling guilt-tripped or rejected by a friend. 'That means not just technically having the option to stop sharing, but knowing you won't be guilted, shut out, or shamed if you do,' Groskopf continued. 'A parent saying, 'I want to know where you are in case of emergency' is one thing. A friend saying, 'Why'd you turn off your location?' with passive-aggressive silence afterward is something else entirely.' She added, 'Safe tracking only works when it's not being weaponized to regulate someone else's fear, jealousy, or insecurity.' Start the conversation with curiosity, not criticism, Caswell said. 'Instead of banning [location sharing], I recommend walking through privacy settings together and having calm conversations about why they're sharing in the first place,' she said. 'Is it for safety? To feel connected to their bestie? Because they feel pressured to? Helping teens understand why they are doing it makes location sharing a lot safer and more intentional.' From there, encourage your teen to only share their location with 'a small, trusted circle of close friends or family,' and check in on this list frequently. 'One mom I worked with told me her daughter was shocked to find an ex-boyfriend still had access to her location,' Caswell said. 'Of course, that explained why he kept 'randomly' showing up wherever she was. Instead of freaking out, the mom used it as an opportunity to talk with her daughter about how to use tech more safely moving forward.' It's always a good idea to talk with your teens about how to stay safe online and set boundaries around privacy with their friends. But keep in mind, this starts at home. 'Let your teen say no to you sometimes,' Caswell suggested. 'Practicing boundaries with someone safe gives them the confidence to do it with someone who isn't,' she added. 'That's how they build real-world safety skills — not just digital ones.'
The Age
14-05-2025
- The Age
Parents love these apps. So do violent criminals
One of the most popular tracking apps is Life360, which allows users to invite family and friends to have their location shown live on a private map. Its use has surged in Australia from 1.9 million monthly active users in the June quarter of 2023 to 2.7 million in the same period the following year. Another is Snap Map, which lets selected friends see the user's location. Loading Research from the eSafety Commissioner, involving a survey of 2000 adults, shows the extent to which this has become normalised. It found men (one in five) were more likely than women (one in 10) to agree that constantly texting to ask who their partner was with or what they were doing was usually a sign of care. Men were also more likely (26.3 per cent) than women (11.8 per cent) to think that wanting their partner to be constantly available to respond to texts, calls or video chat was a sign of care in a partnership. Almost 14 per cent of the 2000 survey participants said using a location-sharing app to track an intimate partner whenever they wanted to would be reasonable, but that jumped to almost 19 per cent for 18- to 24-year-olds. 'When this is happening to young people in, say, their first relationships, I don't think they would self-identify as being a victim survivor of coercive control or domestic violence,' said Inman Grant. Griffith University student Maria Atienzar-Prieto has researched technology-facilitated coercive control in relationships for her PhD thesis, and held focus groups with young people who had used location sharing apps in relationships. She, too, found most young people misinterpreted following a partner via a tracking app as a protective behaviour, and a sign of care and trust. Often, they had been tracked as teens by their parents. 'One of the findings that really highlighted how this behaviour was normalised, was that the behaviour starts in the family home,' Atienzar-Prieto said. '[They said], 'I felt very comfortable using this app with my friends and partners because my parents tracked me while I was growing up.' Parents need to be aware of the associated risks that can come with this type of technology.' The focus groups told Atienzar-Prieto that location sharing was regarded as a demonstration of commitment in young relationships, so if someone in the relationship tried to stop sharing it can be seen as a sign of distrust or a breach of dating etiquette. 'A lot willingly opt in because everyone around them does it – their family, their friends, it's very easy to opt in,' she said. 'But when a young person doesn't want to share their location, opting out is very difficult.' Loading Some children track their parents too. One discussion on a Facebook mother's group talked about young people finding the tracking of their parents reassuring, after hearing a group of teens discussing it on a train. 'I get notifications that Mum has left home, or Mum has returned home,' one said. 'I don't know how to turn it off, but I actually like it.' Yet even when used as a safety precaution, tracking apps don't necessarily work. Audrey Griffin used such an app, and reportedly sent friends details of her location when she walked home in the early hours of Sunday, March 23. Her friends lost track of her at around 3am and reported her disappearance to police. She was allegedly murdered by a stranger that night. 'A lot of the girls and young women mention, 'Well, I feel safer, if I'm going alone – I would prefer someone knowing where my location is',' said Atienzar-Prieto. 'That can also create a false sense of safety.' Inman Grant urged parents to discuss boundaries around surveillance and tracking apps with their children, and to never watch them without their knowledge. 'To say, 'I'm turning this on because I'm concerned about your safety and need to know where you are',' she said. 'Where it becomes problematic is when a child is being monitored, called several times at school, followed after school. We don't want this sense of being surveilled or monitored to be normalised as they start to embark on intimate and romantic relationships.'
