PRESS RELEASE From Mary Honeyball Labour MEP for London 

PROTECT OUR CHIDLREN FROM MOBILE PHONE ABUSE DEMANDS LABOUR MEP Mary Honeyball, Labour MEP for London, has today written to the UK Information Commissioner, Richard Thomas, demanding that children and vulnerable people be protected from abusive mobile phone tracking. 

Ms Honeyball is insisting that the person being tracked, the "locatee", be asked for their permission to be located on every occasion that this arises.At present the "locator" only has to ask once for blanket permission.  A person can therefore tracked ad infinitum following only one initial request.  

Children and vulnerable people are therefore at risk from paedophiles and other potential abusers who can continually track their prey via mobile phones.  

Until recently only the police and security services could track people in this way.  But now, thanks to agreements signed by five mobile phone networks, 40 companies can sell passive location services, which means that this kind of information can be sold retail to anyone. 

"Everyone has a right to know who may be following them" stated Ms Honeyball.  "Unless action is taken regarding the potential for abuse in mobile phone tracking, something very serious could happen to one of our children.  We must stop this before it gets to that point."

 ENDS  

Click links to view the notes to editors:  John Carr's briefing note and letter to Richard Thomas.