Here we go again with the invisible line between safety and surveillance. Verizon published new guidance for families sending students to college, and the useful takeaway is not “track harder.” It is this: set the rules before move-in day, while everyone is calm.
Location sharing can help a student confirm they made it home, meet friends, or give a parent a little peace of mind. It can also become a constant-checking habit that makes every delayed update feel like an emergency. If your family uses it, treat it like a safety tool, not a leash.
Location sharing needs rules before campus starts
Verizon’s July guidance says location sharing is now part of everyday college life and urges parents and students to set healthy boundaries, privacy expectations, and respectful check-in habits. The company’s article also says students may use location tools socially, including to see who is nearby, whether friends are still out, or whether someone made it home safely.
What this means for you: do not wait for the first late-night scare to define the rules. Write down when checking is OK, what counts as an emergency, and when the student can go offline without getting interrogated.
1. Decide who gets your location
Apple says Family Sharing can share location through Find My, Messages, and Maps. Apple also says that after location sharing is turned on for the family group, each family member can choose whether to share their location with the rest of the family group.
That choice matters. A parent, sibling, roommate, dating partner, and friend group do not all need the same access. The wider the sharing list gets, the more the feature shifts from safety backup to social pressure.
What to do: before move-in, open the phone’s location-sharing settings together and name the people who actually need access. Remove old contacts from high school, old group chats, or one-time trips.
2. Make “offline” a normal option
Verizon’s guidance is blunt about one point parents need to hear: turning location sharing off does not always mean something is wrong. The article lists ordinary reasons a student may pause sharing, including wanting privacy, being socially overwhelmed, studying during finals, or needing a break from feeling visible.
What this means for you: if every offline moment triggers a call, the tool has already failed. Set a plain rule: the student can pause sharing for normal privacy, but agrees to respond through another channel during true emergencies.
3. Check the app defaults, not just the family rule
Google’s Location Sharing help says the setting is off by default and is device- and account-specific. Google also says people you choose to share with can see your name, photo, and real-time location across Google apps or services such as Maps, Messages, Find Hub, Family Link, and Personal Safety.
That is a reminder to check the actual app settings on the actual phone. A student using more than one Google account, an old tablet, or a replacement phone may have different settings than everyone assumes.
What to do: check Apple Find My and Google Location Sharing on the devices the student will actually carry. If they use an old phone, tablet, or secondary account, check that too.
4. Keep it separate from your wireless bill
Location sharing is an app feature, not a reason to upgrade to a more expensive unlimited plan by itself. The real phone-bill questions are still data use, hotspot needs, device payments, campus Wi-Fi quality, and whether a student line belongs on a family plan or a cheaper prepaid option.
What this means for you: do not let a safety conversation become a carrier upsell. If the current line already has enough data and campus Wi-Fi is reliable, location sharing alone should not force a plan change.
The SaveOnPhone read
- Set expectations before move-in: the first rule talk should happen before a stressful night, not during one.
- Access should be narrow: share with trusted people who need it, not every friend group or old contact.
- Privacy is not suspicious: a student can want independence and still agree to emergency check-ins.
- Do not confuse safety with a plan upgrade: location sharing does not automatically justify a higher monthly bill.
What to do this week
- List who can see the student’s location and remove anyone who no longer needs access.
- Agree on what counts as an emergency check.
- Decide when the student can pause sharing without explaining every move.
- Check Apple and Google location settings on the real devices going to campus.
- Review the student’s data use before changing wireless plans.