Constant surveillance's effect on children and parents
The gist
The Atlantic published Sarah Zhang's article on apps that track children from infancy into college.
Three-quarters of parents of teens can access their kids' location data.
How it unfolded
- 2021Psychologist Michaeline Jensen of the University of North Carolina at Greensboro found one-third of college students were being tracked by their parents.
- 2024The Federal Trade Commission reported that large social media and video streaming companies engaged in vast surveillance of users with lax privacy controls and inadequate safeguards for kids and teens.
- Nov 9, 2026The Atlantic published Sarah Zhang's article "What Constant Surveillance Is Doing to Children"; Privacy International published "Mapping Facial Recognition in Schools."
Key terms
- Privacy International
- A UK-based charity that defends and promotes the right to privacy worldwide.
- Federal Trade Commission
- Independent U.S. government agency enforcing civil antitrust law and promoting consumer protection.
- Hacker News
- A social news website focused on computer science and entrepreneurship, run by Y Combinator.
Source: Wikipedia