Smartphones equipped with GPS-enabled location tracking technology can help parents out on Halloween. Applications will get parents timely data on where their children are and can discourage kids from wandering too far.
Google Latitude: Offered as both a separate app and as an opt-in feature of the free Google Maps, Latitude lets users share their locations with friends or family. You choose to "Join Latitude" and then invite your children to join. Once people accept, they appear as icons on Google Maps. Inviting people lets them see your location. Available on Android, BlackBerry, Apple and other devices. Cost: free.
Lookout: Parents can track children with Lookout, which was intended to find a lost phone or secure data on a stolen device. After downloading the app onto your child's phone, log in online, click on the "missing device" tab, and locate the phone - and your child. Available on Android, BlackBerry, iPhone and iPad. Cost: free.
Footprints: This paid app includes parental controls that allow location tracking at all times, and it is password protected to keep a child from tampering with it. Parents can download the app onto their child's phone, create an account and tweak the settings. The app must be installed on both a child's and a parent's phone, and each download requires a paid subscription. Available only on the iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch. Cost: Free for two months, 99 cents for three months, $2.99 for a year, $4.99 for two years.
Trick or Tracker: Location data are sent to a preset phone number. Parents must download the app onto both their phones and their children's phones, choose one password to sync up the two devices, and pick a time interval to receive text updates. Parents also can create a digital fence to encourage children to stay within a certain area. A "Where's my parent?" button lets kids find parents. Available only for Android phones. Cost: $4.99 for each download.
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