New technology allows parents to monitor and control teen cell phone use
New technology helps parents prevent their teens from texting while driving and monitor how heavy their foot is on the gas pedal.
We all know how hazardous texting while driving can be. We can educate our teens of the dangers of texting while driving, and even try scare tactics to dissuade them from doing so. That said, our parenting will only take us so far. At the end of the day, we can only sit back and hope we got the message through to our children and they’ll make the right choices…until now.
New technology allows parents to program their teen’s cell phones so that incoming and outgoing texts and calls are disabled while the teen is driving. On top of that, parents can also be alerted if their child is speeding or in a speeding vehicle.
Two companies which are offering such services are tXtBlocker and TASER International.
In addition to the ability to disable texts and calls when the person is driving, you can also establish when and where the cell phone is functional – preventing teens from using their cell’s during school hours or other inappropriate times.
Oh, and tXtBlocker offers another feature parents may find useful; email alerts. Parents have the option to draw parameters around areas creating “Safe Zones” or geofences which, as just mentioned, prevent teens from using their phone when it’s unacceptable. When the cell phone leaves a Safe Zone, parents can receive an email alert. On the surface, it sounds like a good way to monitor the child who has the tendency to skip school but, of course, the kid will probably catch on quickly and learn to “accidentally” leave their cell phone at school.
There are several other features each company offers, such as real-time tracking and the ability to program safe numbers the user can call even when the phone is otherwise disabled. To learn more, you can visit their websites:
Personally, I think the technology to control your teen’s texting when driving and monitor their driving speed is a great idea. What do you think?