FutureFive New Zealand - Consumer technology news & reviews from the future
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Mon, 1st Aug 2011
FYI, this story is more than a year old

Although this technology might not classify as "futuristic” (it already exists and is not anything as extraordinary as flying cars), it is something fairly new and something that is taking the concept of surveillance technology to a new level, causing a fair amount of controversy.Teensurance was developed by an insurance company in the United States and is a surveillance technology meant to educate teens on appropriate driving etiquette. It uses GPS as a tracking device, and parents will receive an email or text when their teen takes the car outside of a designated area or if they drive above a certain speed.Obviously, parents using this think they are doing the right thing by keeping tabs on their child, ensuring that they are staying safe and out of trouble, but many people have argued that tracking your child's every move is going too far. Not only does it indicate a lack of trust and communication, but it also shelters your teen from the real world in a sense and stops them from learning and making mistakes on their own.Whatever your stance on Teensurance is, it is definitely worth a mention in this section, since it is an example of the way technology is headed and the extreme surveillance society we are starting to see!