How to Stop Google People Tracker Privacy Issues on Your Cellphone

The Google People Tracker is the popular name given to a new cellphone feature in Google Latitude that runs alongside the popular mobile version of Google Maps. The Google People Tracker service in Google Latitudes combines GPS with the cellphone's built-in Google Maps feature to track people and find where people are on a map. This tracking feature of Google People Tracker obviously raises privacy concerns. Protect your cellphone privacy by learning how to stop Google People Tracker privacy issues on your cell.

Difficulty:

Moderately Easy

Instructions

1. Understand the privacy issues raised by the people tracking feature of Google People Tracker. The mobile Google Latitude cellphone feature uses GPS to show everyone where you are in a constantly-updated version of Google Maps. Thus, anyone can track your movement and find people on a map using Google's tracking service.

2. Visit the Google Latitude mobile cellphone website (link in the Resources section) using your computer's Internet browser. Enter your cellphone number on the Google Latitude webpage. Google will then send you a mobile text link to a copy of Google Latitude that works on your cellphone. You must activate Google Latitude on your cellphone before tracking people.

3. Turn on Manual Location in Google Latitude to disable its ability to track people. Manual location tells Google Latitude a default location for where you are. Thus, when people try to find you and track your movement, they will see only your default location. This hides you from the Google people tracking service.

4. Never add Google friends that you don't know or who you don't want to be able to track your movement. Only your Google friends can track your movement in Google Latitude. Protect your privacy and hide from tracking by only letting close friends and family members see your movement on Google Maps.

5. Disable Google Latitude to completely stop Google from tracking people. To disable Google Latitude and stop the privacy issues involved with Google People Tracking, sign out of Google Latitude by clicking Privacy in Google Latitude. From the same privacy menu, you can also have Google Latitude hide your current location from its people tracking feature.

6. Don't forget to close iGoogle or sign out of iGoogle if you have it running in your mobile cellphone browser. Disabling the people tracking service in Google Latitude will not work if you still have it running in the iGoogle mobile application.

Resources

• Google Latitude Website