When your children get older and start spending more time out of the house with friends, safety can become a big concern for many parents.
But one mum has said her husband has gone too far with his desire to know exactly what his kids are up to – as he’s been tracking their every move.
The mum-of-two claims her husband Liam bought each of their children - 14-year-old Holly and 12-year-old Miles - an Apple Watch so that he could monitor the GPS and compare it with their schedules, Kidspot reports.
She said: “Liam has become increasingly concerned about our children’s whereabouts – where they are going after school or on the weekend, who they are with and what they are doing when she isn’t at home.
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“Obviously, we have rules and expectations that Holly and Miles must adhere to when they are out with friends – places that are off limits, curfews, checking in with us at specific times, asking permission before they go somewhere – that sort of thing, and to be honest that is all I thought was all we needed.
“Despite this, over recent months Liam has become almost obsessed with knowing every detail of our kids’ whereabouts. He has gone as far as to buy them Apple watches that have GPS on them so he can track exactly where they are at any time, and he does!
“He will ask Holly and Miles their schedule each day but then he will compare what they have said to the data on the watch. If there is ever any discrepancy, it is like a police interrogation when they return home about what they have been up to.”
The woman said her children know about the watches having GPS tracking, but thought it would be used “in case they are late or lost” – and not for their dad to watch their every move.
The mum has tried talking to her husband about his actions, as she believes the watches are an “invasion of privacy” and a “betrayal of trust”.
She added: “I just think using it for anything else is such an invasion of privacy, especially for Holly. She is a teenager and while I expect her to be responsible, I know she is growing up and will do silly things at some point and that’s okay.
“If the kids find out they will see it as a betrayal of trust (which for the record I would agree with) and is also the reason I haven’t told them what he is doing myself.
“The irony of it all is that they are both such great kids and 90 percent of the time Liam’s tracking is fruitless.”
The woman’s husband is convinced tracking his children’s movements is “more important than ever”, but the mum is worried they won’t learn how to communicate and be honest if their parents don’t set the right example.
She said: “I’ve asked Liam to stop but he says that now, especially as Holly gets even older and starts dating and as Miles starts high school too, that knowing where they are is more important than ever.
“He also says every time some sort of child abduction makes headlines, ‘This is why you need these devices’, as if his actions are justified. This gets right under my skin because I doubt this is even the smallest motivation for why he is tracking them.
“Of course, I want my kids to be safe, but this just isn’t the way to do it and if anything, it will do the opposite. I mean how to they learn for themselves and understand the importance of communication, responsibility and honesty if we aren’t setting that example ourselves?”
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