The Guardian has the story about the possible use of tracking devices in school uniforms. It’s no surprise that this comes from a surveillance-happy society such as the UK.
People often forget what kind of problem they’re trying to solve when they think up of some solution. As some put it, they’re solutions looking for the problems. And I can’t see what kind of problem they’re trying to solve here.
The article quotes a poll, carried by the uniform maker that is planning to introduce this technology, where 59% of the parents showed interest in tracking their kids. However, people aren’t good at evaluating risks and, more often than not, they get it wrong.
It’s normal for any parent to be concerned over their child. What they really want, however, is to keep their kids safe, not the tracking device. They might think that attaching a satellite tracking device will make their kids safe, but reality might (and probably does) disagree.
There’s absolutely no data in the article that suggests that it would be good measure. Given the lack of data, it’s probably security theater at its best. If kids want to escape from school to do something they think is important, a change of clothes is no challenge. The same applies to kidnappers.
What else is there to worry about? Kids getting lost? How often does that happen?