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Friday, 10 March 2006
Dr Stoate to co-sponsor Bill aimed at regulating child tracking services
Dartford MP, Dr Howard Stoate, is to co-sponsor a new bill next Tuesday to regulate services that let parents track their children via their mobile phones.

MPs and children’s charities are concerned that the tracking services, which allow parents to pinpoint the precise location of their child’s mobile within seconds through a text message or the web, could be open to abuse by third parties.

The ten minute rule bill, which is being introduced by Labour MP, Judy Mallaber, aims to establish a licensing regime for the sale or promotion of any mobile phone service providing data on the location of children.                                        

“Although the companies who run these services have put security measures in place to try and prevent them from being misused, they are under no legal obligation to do so. There is nothing to stop less scrupulous operators at present form entering the market and taking advantage of the lack of legal safeguards,” said Dr Stoate.

“It isn’t enough to rely on the industry being able to police itself; without a strong regulatory framework in place, security breaches are inevitable. I can understand that some parents might find these kind of services reassuring, but on the other hand there is a real danger that the wrong kind of people could get access to them unless we have the right safeguards in place.”

“At the very least companies should be legally required to reveal who is using the tracking facilities and to confirm that the child has in fact given his or her permission to be tracked,” the MP added.
 
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