GM’s Latest OnStar Feature: Parents Can Track Their Teens, In Real Time

Teens are going to have to work harder to hide their whereabouts, once GM wraps up a pilot program that lets concerned parents track the location of their precious ones, in real time.

The program is part of the OnStar system, and over 10,000 of its current subscribers have been chosen to take part. Parents can log onto a GM website and view the location of their car on a map, thereby preventing a web of lies and deceit. Alerts can pop up in the form of a text message or an email.

“Our subscribers have asked us for a solution to help them stay connected to their family when they’re on the road,” said Linda Marshall, president of OnStar. “What parent hasn’t asked their teenaged driver to call or send a text when they arrive somewhere, only to not hear from them?”

The program isn’t just limited to helicopter doting parents, too: OnStar suggests that it could be used to track the elderly, cheating husbands, or in less dramatic fashion, those driving long distances or through bad weather.

OnStar is also considering programs that can alert subscribers when a car exceeds the speed limit, or drives further than a set location, or—presumably—when somebody turns on the radio to Howard Stern.