Share your location in real time

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Sharing real-time location with other people is a sensitive topic as there are many doubts relating to privacy which, inevitably and rightly, pop up. Especially in this period when there is so much talk about contact tracing, data sharing and so on.
However, we all agree, we believe, that it should be possible to share one's position with a friend or with your partner without an advertising agency (Google) using it for profit. Meanwhile we want to reassure everyone: we absolutely don't want to talk about applications for spying on someone or engaging in squalid and dangerous stalking.

In fact, we are talking about different needs such as the need to share the position with your partner, with the own family or with some friends. There are many reasons that can push us to do so Let's not go into the merits of the decisions of each couple or families who decide to do so.

One of the easiest ways to share your location in real time, temporarily, is to use Signal or Telegram. In fact, with these two programs you can share temporarily your position with extreme security. As you know, we advise you not to do it with Whatsapp because, yes, in short, Zuckerberg.

Sharing your location in real time goes back to Google

Google offers a rather practical solution to this problem: in fact, you can share your location in real time with anyone and for as long as we want in a simple way on Google Maps. It would be a nice solution if it weren't for the fact that we don't trust Google very much and that using this method means be constantly and inevitably tracked by Google more than we already are.

It wasn't easy to find free applications for this purpose, but something came up and we want to tell you about it. We have personally tested and analyzed most of the apps with ClassyShark3xodus to see what they really contain. We will also give priority to apps that don't ask for your cell phone number because the mobile phone is an overly used method for marketing and for recognizing a person. In fact, ordinary people they rarely change their mobile number so this becomes, almost without realizing it, a part of us.

Share real-time location, apps

Traccar

Traccar is the first name that comes to mind for real-time location sharing because it is one of the major companies Open source on this front. But unfortunately requires its own server and, alternatively, the cost of using one of their servers is at least 10$ per month using up to 5 mobile phones. So if there are many of you it may be convenient, but with just two it starts to be a bit of an excessive expense. You can find out more at Track by going to their website: traccar.org. There is a version for Android (also on F-Droid) and one also for iOS. Unfortunately it is also the only reality Open source that we know, the next alternatives will be everyone good compromises from our point of view.

TICE App

A good application private and secure, with a End-to-end encryption. It is not necessary to give our mobile number and recently all its clients have also become Open source ¹ and also present on F-Droid!

Zood

Excellent application Open source ² and completely free. The privacy policy is excellent and above all sharing is with End-to-end encryption. It's all too good to be free and so we can't exactly understand the business model! Currently only available for Android on Play Store or up IzzyOnDroid.

Graticule

It's our first choice even if it is not the most comfortable and practical of all. The reason is easy to say: it doesn't require no strange permissions And it doesn't even contain a Trackers! It therefore does not require any type of registration no email And no phone number is asked. In terms of privacy, therefore, in our opinion, we are there. The system is slightly more inconvenient than others as, after running it, you will be given a tracking link which you will have to give to whoever you want.

It is therefore very useful if there are only two people (think of a couple). You can save the link as a favorite and easily visit it on your own Browsers favorite. However, it is not recommended in more complex cases where perhaps more than two people need to share their position. Furthermore, it doesn't seem to run automatically when the phone is restarted, so you have to remember to do it manually. Unfortunately the map is displayed only with Google Maps, only flaw. You can only find it on Android.

Corcanoe

This is also a very interesting app for sharing your location in real time. Corcanoe in fact it will ask you for a registration but you will not be asked for your mobile number. Just any email will suffice. Furthermore the privacy policy it is discreet in our opinion. Unfortunately there are both Trackers of Facebook that those of Google because of the advertisements. Paying a very low amount (€1.79 per year) however, you will no longer have advertising.

We would have preferred it to be there a separate app without i tracers for those who purchase the pro version. In this case however we should trust that the tracers are actually deactivated once the subscription is purchased. But the app is Pretty And practice, fast And functional. Tested for a long time, it has never given us any problems. You can also create one geo-fence For be warned when a person leaves (or approaches) a place. Unfortunately, the Google Maps map but we asked the developer to add OpenStreetMaps and he proved to be quite available, we hope! You can only find it on Android.

Family 360

At the time of writing this application is still in beta. The app works well, does not require a phone number but only an E-Mail for recording and that's a good thing. But the privacy policy It's unclear what they're talking about sharing our location with third parties and it's not too clear how to do it opt-out (we didn't understand it). The app also contains i tracers for them Facebook advertising, also in this case however with a subscription monthly (€2.79) advertising will be removed. However, all remain others tracers of Facebook (for example the login one). Also in this case unfortunately only the Google Maps map. Only available on Android.

FamilyWall

Interesting application, quite complete and which also includes many other activities. Unfortunately what we are interested in for this article, the real-time location sharing, it's a paid service. There privacy policy but it is interesting and the app also contains relatively few Trackers. So if you need something more complete it could be ideal, like all the other apps this one too does not require cell phone. You can only find it on Android.

Applications not recommended

Among the most famous applications there is we do not recommend the use of Life360 as it requires a lot of data, the application contains up to 15 Trackers (!) including those of Google and of Facebook. Also it is Cell phone is also mandatory. Additionally, it has sold child and family location data to about a dozen data brokers who have sold data to virtually anyone who wants to buy it, according to The Markup ³. You we do not recommend Also Glympse as we do not appreciate theirs privacy policy and their app contains many Trackers, Furthermore he asks us for our mobile number. Same goes for Safe365 And GPS-Locator 24.

Share real-time location on iPhone

We do not directly know the Apple reality as, for now, we do not have the ability to test the apps. But we base ourselves on the comments and opinions found online, here are the suggested apps.

Traccar

Traccar is the first name that comes to mind for real-time location sharing because it is one of the major companies Open source on this front. But unfortunately requires its own server and, alternatively, the cost of using one of their servers is at least 10$ per month using up to 5 mobile phones. So if there are many of you it may be convenient, but with just two it starts to be a bit of an excessive expense. You can find out more at Track by going to their website: traccar.org. There is a version for Android (also on F-Droid) and one also for iOS. Unfortunately it is also the only reality Open source that we know, the next alternatives will be everyone good compromises from our point of view.

TICE App

A good application private and secure, with a End-to-end encryption. It is not necessary to give our mobile number and recently all its clients have also become Open source ⁴!

Miataru

Miataru is a reality Open source interesting, in addition to his version for iOS there is also a client Browsers to be able to use. It is, as we said, Open source and costs €3.49. You can use one of the servers managed by Miataru or, if you are capable, you can use your own. Unfortunately there is no Android version and the app doesn't seem to have many updates.

1. TICE Software on GitHub[↩]
2. source code by Zood[↩]
3. The Popular Family Safety App Life360 Is Selling Precise Location Data on Its Tens of Millions of Users[↩]
4. TICE Software on GitHub[↩]

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