Many parents monitor their children on the phone

Six out of ten children report that their parents "constantly" or "occasionally" track them on their phones.

A new survey with over 1000 children aged 9-14 years, conducted by Epinion for DR's children's news service, Ultra Nyt, has revealed this.

In the survey from Ultra Nyt, children were also asked if they had ever lied to their parents about their whereabouts.

Thirty-seven percent answered yes, 52 percent answered no, 5 percent did not know, and 7 percent refused to answer.

The organization Børns Vilkår is not surprised that so many parents track their children using GPS on their smartphones.

However, the numbers are high, says childcare consultant Ida Hilario. She says the numbers could be an indication that it has become normal to track one's children.

Børns Vilkår advises against tracking children using GPS.

The organization also manages the Child Phone, and they report receiving many calls from children who feel they are being monitored by their parents.

"There are many children and young people who feel they are being monitored by their parents, who don't have much privacy, and who their parents don't trust," Ida Hilario tells Ultra Nyt.

Ida Hilario understands that many families are happy with the tool. However, she believes that even in cases where everyone is happy with the tracking, it has value for children to also roam the world without parents being able to follow them.

"Because it's simply so important for children and young people to practice managing things on their own and to be independent, without parents knowing where they are."

"And it's also important that parents learn to let children be independent, because it can also be difficult for parents," she tells Ultra Nyt.

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