Britain's mothers are turning to 007-style spy technology in a bid to keep tabs on their mobile phone-using kids.
It's now 'Big Mother', not Big Brother, who is watching over you it seems as 62 concerned mums admitted they were prepared to register their children's phone numbers at a website, which can trace a mobile anywhere in the UK.
The site www.traceamobile.com is proving popular with mums, as they try to ensure their children's safety. So even on Mother's Day it seems like mums up and down Britain will be keeping a watchful eye on their family.
The company carried out a survey of 2,500 families which revealed that nearly two-thirds (57 per cent) of youngsters already owned a mobile and that 93 per cent of concerned mums thought children under the age of 16 should be allowed a phone and an astonishingly two per cent thought even a four-year-old should carry a mobile. Nearly 81 per cent said they feared for their child's safety, with almost two-thirds believing it is more dangerous for kids in towns than the country.
It was also women rather than men who were most likely to spy on their partners' mobile, with 37 per cent saying they would track their husband's or boyfriend's phone as compared to only 22 per cent of men for their wives or girlfriend's.
Trace A Mobile's managing director Jonathan Cook said: "People want peace of mind and our mobile tracking website provides that. It's low cost, completely safe and secure service, which only allows registered users to trace a mobile phone. The phone's owner also has to give their permission, so there's no likelihood of someone else being able to trace you. It's also compatible with all major network operators and handsets, including pay-as-you-go."
The service works by using the signal from any registered switched-on mobile. This is 'triangulated' by three or more phone masts, allowing its position to be traced to within 100 metres of its location.
Until recently, the technology to trace a mobile has only been available to the police and emergency services and was used for example by the Portuguese police in the hunt for missing Madeleine McCann.
The polls also found 58 per cent of mums are spending between £5 to £20 a month on their child's mobile, with seven per cent prepared to pay even more than £20 a month.