The Brief: Life 360 is an app that tracks the locations of friends and family members.

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DEEP DIVE

Life 360 uses real-time location data so people can keep track of their friends and family members. It also includes features so that people can see the speed at which someone is traveling and the amount of phone battery they have. According to Life 360, they had over 18 million monthly active users at the end of 2018.

Similar to Life 360 is a free app with options for paid premium upgrades. By paying $2.99 a month, users can access a more lengthy location history and unlimited place alerts. A $7.99 per month subscription includes a “driver protect” package with crash detection, roadside assistance, and driver reports.

Apple App Store

This app is commonly used as a safety tool for parents looking to monitor the locations of their children, friends who want to ensure that everyone gets home safe, and parents of teen drivers. It can also help locate lost or stolen devices.

A popular TikTok trend was inspired by Life 360 in which kids poke fun at the surveillance their subjected to by parents who use the app.

Safety & Privacy

As its purpose is location sharing, Life 360 does track the locations of users. Settings can be customized to control who can see this information and when. According to Life 360’s privacy policy, they may share user information with third-party services for marketing purposes.