Geolocation is the ability to locate an object, such as a phone or computer, and can be used for various purposes. IP addresses and credit card usage can also be tracked. Geolocation can aid in emergency situations, but accuracy can be affected by factors such as weather and signal quality.
Geolocation is a generic term used to describe the ability to find the physical location of an object in the world. Examples of objects with trackable location information include cell phones, global positioning system (GPS) devices, and computers with active Internet connections. Geolocation technologies can be used to find missing people, gather information about web users, or register your personal location on social networking sites. Social networking sites that use geolocation technology include Foursquare and whrrl.
Computers connected to the Internet can often be located by their Internet Protocol (IP) addresses. An IP address is a numeric code that often identifies a user’s Internet Service Provider (ISP) and location, and can also identify you to your ISP. Users who want to increase privacy on the Internet and reduce the possibility of being geolocated by IP can use a proxy to browse the web. A proxy server is a hardware device or software program that reroutes Internet requests, providing different IP and computer information than would otherwise be transmitted from a computer.
Credit card usage can be tracked as a form of geolocation. When a person goes missing and their credit cards show activity in a certain area, authorities often focus search efforts and look for clues in the locations where the card was read. This technology can also be used to track the activity of purchases made with stolen credit cards.
In emergencies requiring rescue, a hiker can use geolocation software on a cell phone to broadcast his or her location to emergency services. If a hiker gets lost, geolocation can sometimes help find them via their phone, using geolocation technology that can help track the missing hiker’s path. Some phone models can be activated for geolocation even if they are not turned on.
While geolocation can be useful in many cases, it also comes with its own problems. Most types of geolocation technology are considered to be slightly inaccurate when it comes to pinpointing your location. These devices often track a user’s general location, but the margin of error can range from about 328 feet (100 meters) to 1.5 miles (2.4 kilometers), which can make it difficult to find geolocated emergency signs. Factors that can affect location accuracy include weather conditions, radio interference, and poor signal quality. Poor signal quality in a GPS system can occur due to a lack of available satellite connections, especially if the user is in a remote location that may be out of range of the normal satellite coverage area.
Protect your devices with Threat Protection by NordVPN
