7 On Your Side's alternative options to track your child amid new school cellphone ban
NEW YORK (WABC) -- With the new statewide cellphone ban in schools across New York, many parents want to know how they can still keep track of their kids if they don't have their phones.
7 On Your Side has the top back-to-school products to help caregivers see a child's whereabouts - even if they aren't carrying a phone.
Tracking gadgets like the button-shaped Apple AirTag or Samsung SmartTag can fit into a child's shoe, pocket or backpack and allow an adult to GPS track their location at all times.
Originally made to keep track of keys and lost luggage, many parents are pairing the tags with their phone's Find My Device app to make sure their kids are safe and locate them quickly.
For something that is hard to lose, other options include shoe inserts. Technology is embedded into a shoe sole that is discreet, waterproof and can be customized to any shoe size.
Some shoe trackers are subscription-based and offer real-time updates and monitoring, which can alert you when the tracker leaves designated areas.
And some shoe inserts are now sold with cutouts to affix AirTags or similar options inside.
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Another device is AngelSense, an AI-powered GPS tracker designed by parents of children with special needs.
Jeannie Callahan works for the company and says she has a son with autism who goes to school wearing his small tracker.
She can talk to him or others around him by activating a speaker and it has an SOS button on the device in case of emergency that the child can push.
"The whole point is the proactivity. When they arrive or leave a location you're given a notification on your phone," Callahan said. "Parents can remote monitor that they're OK, but not so intrusively where their child has their cellphone, is disrupting class, maybe taking video, so can it really can be helpful for kids with special needs and neurotypical kids, especially in the climate that we live in."
With all the tracking gadgets, experts recommend telling your children you are tracking them.
One of the biggest concerns is that if your child's location is marked in some way, someone else could potentially track them as well - either by tapping into your WiFi or hacking your password.
That's why it's important to look for apps designed for families and always enable two-factor authentication and opt for end-to-end encryption.
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