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Source: ONE News -
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A new mobile phone service which allows parents to be sent copies of their children's texts and phone calls has been launched in New Zealand.
The new US-based mobile phone monitoring service is called My Mobile Watchdog and says its aim is to keep the children safe.
In its first week in New Zealand, the service has been met with mixed reactions; with some saying they just are not convinced such a service will be good for parent-child trust.
Those who wish to sign up for the service though, need to pay $15 a month to gain access to the company website.
They need to register their child and make a list of names and numbers deemed to be 'safe'.
Then if their child communicates with numbers that are not on the list, the parent is emailed copies of the texts, or details of the calls.
Schools say they are welcoming the service, especially in light of text bullying scarring many schools kids.
"A lot of teachers spend a lot of time with parents unravelling the problem after its occurred and parents can be quite unpleasantly surprised with the kind of messages that are left on phones," says Kate Gainsford of Post Primary Teachers Associations (PPTA).
But others are warning about the loopholes.
"The downside is if you're trying to remove risk from the child's life by monitoring them, you're overlooking the fact that they may just move the risk somewhere else," says Martin Crocket of NetSafe.
