gps phone tracking advice required

[Osem]

I've heard it's possible to set up phone tracking so that you can keep track of where the kids are at any given time. Given Osem Jnr #2's vulnerabilities, I'm wondering if such a service might be useful for us in the event that he got lost while out and about.

I'd be very grateful if someone could explain (or point me in the direction of a not too tecchie explanation) of how this works and how to set it up. Just to point out that he can't use a phone, it'd be something we'd hope to set up and switch on just when we're out and about. He wandered off in a busy shopping centre once some years ago and gave us the biggest fright! It's not something we'd like to repeat and obviously we worry greatly about his safety.

Cheers.

[Russ]

If it's an Android you just need to enable Location Services on your Google Account, then go to https://maps.google.com/locationhistory/b/0 and it should show up there.

It's been a while since I used it but I always found it to work well.

[Osem]

It would be an android phone but not mine. I'm assuming we'd need to give him a suitable Android phone (one of our old ones) and enable it in some way. Just confused about what I need to set up and how.

[Russ]

AFAIK the phones are enabled by default but if not depending on which model it is the setting up is pretty simple such as going in to Settings and finding where the Location part is.

Once that's done you just going on to the link above, sign in and it should start showing up.

[iain_herts]

hi i use cerberusapp.com

allows you to do a number of things from gps location to reading the last 20 sms sent and recived

[Osem]

Thanks guys. All we really need is to know where he is in real time (or as recently as is possible) so we can find him if he gets lost.

[techguyone]

google+ has it under 'locations' you can add family members, similar to how the old lattitudes worked, it's simple enough, you do need to keep gps on though for an accurate reading.

[Osem]

Originally Posted by techguyone

google+ has it under 'locations' you can add family members, similar to how the old lattitudes worked, it's simple enough, you do need to keep gps on though for an accurate reading.

Never heard of Google plus or lattitudes but will look into it. Thanks.

[techguyone]

Here's google+ in playstore

https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...roid.apps.plus

Lattitudes is discontinued. Both are google products. Not 3rd party add ons

[jamiefrost]

If the location service is on the phone then all you have to do is log on to the Google play website with the account the the phone is registered with and go to my devices and you can request the current location.

you can even get the location history displayed via google maps and it will show where the phone has been over a number of days weeks etc.

J

[techguyone]

That would work if Osem has the child's Google account details and password?

If you do, this would be the link to go to.

https://www.google.com/android/devic...r?hl=en_GB&u=0

You would need to enable it on the child's phone though first.

Here's how to.

http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/how-to/go...evice-manager/

I still prefer to use Google+ location though, as I have the whole family in, and we can all see where we are at any given time.

[qasdfdsaq]

None of the above services work in real-time.

Many Samsung phones have additional functionality built in to do this, on other phones some have it also and some need an app.

Some recent Samsung phones also have a rarely-mentioned function affectionately dubbed the "Rape alarm" which is a shortcut key you can press at any time, which silently takes a picture with both cameras, and sends this along with your GPS co-ordinates and/or an audio recording to a list of people you designate in advance. Course that depends on the user actually triggering it on the device, rather than remotely.

[Osem]

Originally Posted by techguyone

That would work if Osem has the child's Google account details and password?

If you do, this would be the link to go to.

https://www.google.com/android/devic...r?hl=en_GB&u=0

You would need to enable it on the child's phone though first.

Here's how to.

http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/how-to/go...evice-manager/

I still prefer to use Google+ location though, as I have the whole family in, and we can all see where we are at any given time.

Cheers. He doesn't have a phone and can't use one so we'd just give him an old one simply for this purpose. We'd also be hoping that anyone who came across him lost would be able to use the phone to call us and tell us where to find him.

---------- Post added at 19:27 ---------- Previous post was at 19:27 ----------

Originally Posted by jamiefrost

If the location service is on the phone then all you have to do is log on to the Google play website with the account the the phone is registered with and go to my devices and you can request the current location.

you can even get the location history displayed via google maps and it will show where the phone has been over a number of days weeks etc.

J

TVM

[Osem]

Just read something in the news about this subject and as time's moved on and his circumstances are changing so as to make this issue more pressing, I thought we'd better try to sort something out. I can see there are now a number of apps available which purport to offer a tracking service so does anyone here have any experience of them? What we need is something we, and possibly other carers, can use to find him if he wanders off or gets lost. He always carries a rucksack in which we would place the phone but won't be able to operate anything so what's required is just something which sits there and allows people to check where he is from time to time and in real time. Obviously if he was found by someone, we'd be hoping they'd make contact with us in the normal manner via the phone.

TIA as always.

[techguyone]

Try this one:

https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...om.hellotracks