The GPS child tracker

If you’ve feared losing a child in public or want to keep an eye on teenagers, then a British firm may now have a solution for you.

Electronics manufacturer Lok8u has created a GPS child locator called “num8”, which attaches to a child’s wrist and contains a GPS module for tracking.

“It uses GPS and GSM (global system for mobiles) technology with an accuracy of 10 feet (three metres). It tracks your child,” company spokesman Matthew Salmon told The Age.

If a parent wants to locate their child, they can send a text message to a designated number and the child’s location is sent back to the phone. Users can also log into a website to track their child’s movements.

“It only starts working when the device is connected to the child’s wrist,” Salmon says. “Even if the child managed to get it off it would send an emergency text message through to your mobile phone. It would give you a Google maps image with their exact location, the street name and the zip code.”