Showing others where you are in real time can sometimes be useful. But you should also be aware of general risks.
As our cooperation partner checked4you reports, you can transmit your location to other people in real time using Google Maps. WhatsApp rolled out such a feature worldwide on October 18, 2017.
What is and will be the weather where I am? Many of us have activated the location function on our cell phones just to be able to see this. And this alone makes it easy to create a motion profile - like you can see here if you use Android and Google's location history is activated. You can read how to deactivate it in our article about Google Settings .
If this data is already being collected anyway, it could also be transmitted to others in real time. More and more makers of messengers and navigation apps are probably thinking this and offering “live tracking”. So you can send a link or a message to people you choose so they can see where you currently are.
Great options
- You go clubbing with friends and others want to join you. Because you can't understand anything on the phone with the loud music, your friends can see where you and the first part of your clique are at any time.
- After a long party, you have to walk home alone and are a little afraid of walking through the unlit park. If your parents can see live where you are going, you might feel more comfortable.
- Do you want to throw a surprise party and know when the guest of honor will arrive? Then arrange for someone to meet with the person and send you their shared locations.
There are certainly other reasons you can think of to use such a function. But you should never pass on your whereabouts carelessly! And now we come to the downside:
Critical questions
- Who sees your location data? If someone gains unauthorized access to your “live tracking” link, they could use the information to harm you. And if you share the function in a group, for example, you should know that there are no members there who will use your information to clear out your place or attack you.
- What does location history reveal about you? Showing your jogging route live to the whole world may sound sporty. This also shows people where you live and when you are not at home.
- What does the service you use to send your movement profile with your data? He could use them for his own purposes (e.g. profile creation, personalized advertising). For example, Snap says it uses location data for advertising purposes. WhatsApp, on the other hand, explains that the location data is transmitted end-to-end encrypted. The service probably cannot access the information at all. You should definitely know the privacy policy and terms of use and really trust the provider to handle your information responsibly.
- How long is the data available? The service may store your sent location data for a long time and you don't want that. You should also check this in the data protection declaration before use.
- What else is being broadcast? Futurezone reports among others , when you share your location, Google also shows your battery level and whether you are currently charging your battery. Apparently it cannot be switched off at the moment.
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