Life360 is a familiar name for families looking to keep track of each other’s locations. With features like real-time location tracking, driving reports, and safety alerts, it promises to simplify family management and ensure peace of mind. At first glance, it seems like a handy tool for busy parents and concerned caregivers.
But why Life360 is bad is something many users are starting to question. While Life360 makes it easy to know where your loved ones are, the constant tracking can feel invasive. What’s meant to offer security can quickly turn into something that feels like surveillance, making people uneasy about their privacy.
There’s also the question of data security. Life360 boasts features like dark web monitoring, which sounds reassuring, but it raises another concern—what happens to all the personal information the app collects? It’s worth thinking about how much control you have over your data once you start using tools like this.
This article dives deeper into why Life360 might not be the solution it claims to be. If you’ve ever wondered whether the benefits outweigh the risks, keep reading to find out what you should know before making a decision.
Why Life360 is Bad?
Data Selling Practices
Life360, with its massive user base of over 30 million, found itself in hot water after reports surfaced about selling location data to third parties. This wasn’t just internet gossip—former employees confirmed that Life360 had business deals with several data brokers. After acquiring Tile, a popular tracking device company, Life360 allegedly shared even more data from Tile users.
Life360 allows children to use the app with parental consent, but its policy ensures that data from users under 13 is not sold, in compliance with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule (COPPA). However, the company still “discloses” data from younger users to third parties for purposes such as analyzing driving behavior, conducting analytics, or supporting app functionality. This data is not shared for marketing or advertising, but the practice raises concerns about the extent of data exposure.
The news triggered a wave of concern, with many users asking, “Is Life360 safe?” Sadly, the answer isn’t comforting. If you’ve used the app, there’s a good chance your personal information may have already been sold.
Questionable Data Practices
Life360 presents itself as one of the best apps for family safety, but this claim loses credibility when you consider its questionable data practices. After being caught selling user data, it’s clear that the app’s promises don’t align with its actions, raising concerns about misleading advertising.
While companies like Apple, Google, and Amazon have also faced scrutiny over data handling, there’s an important difference—these tech giants don’t market themselves as family safety services. Life360, however, collects highly sensitive information about users and their families. Selling that data to third parties isn’t just concerning—it’s downright alarming.
Stalking Concerns
Why Life360 is bad lies in how it promotes constant surveillance, which can create trust issues within families When family members are tracked 24/7, it can lead to tension rather than security. Unlike other apps that provide location updates only when requested, Life360 allows continuous monitoring, which can feel invasive and damaging to relationships.
What’s worse, Life360 fosters a false sense of safety. While it promises to protect users, it’s primarily focused on collecting and selling their data. In reality, it acts more like a digital stalker than a safety tool, leaving users questioning its true intentions.
Breaking the Bond of Trust
Trust is a fragile thing, especially when it comes to family dynamics. While stalking concerns focus on constant monitoring, trust issues dig deeper into the psychological effects. Imagine raising your children to be responsible and independent—it’s a noble goal. But the moment you start tracking them with Life360, you undermine that effort.
Instead of fostering responsibility, the app encourages dependence. It can even backfire by pushing kids to fake their GPS location just to regain a sense of privacy. In the end, constant surveillance erodes trust and creates a cycle of control and rebellion. Do we really need more reasons to question Life360’s impact on family relationships?
Draining Your Battery
One of the most frustrating problems with Life360 is the constant drain on your phone’s battery. Its constant background app refreshes, which significantly drains your battery. The app needs to continuously update location data and sync with family members, leading to quick battery depletion. Despite the developers claiming the app is optimized to minimize power consumption, many users report the opposite. On a typical day, Life360 can drain your battery in just 5-7 hours, which is completely unacceptable for an app that’s supposed to run in the background.
Even after years of complaints about this issue, there’s been no meaningful response or fix from the developers. The app’s excessive battery drain becomes even harder to ignore when you consider that Life360 is already under fire for selling user data—why should anyone believe their claims about optimization?
This issue may seem small compared to privacy concerns, but it’s a real pain for anyone relying on Life360 for family tracking. And the fact that it’s been around for years without a fix only adds to the frustration.
Unresolved Issues with Location
Why Life360 is bad becomes clear when you look at its ongoing technical issues. Despite Life360’s massive earnings from selling user data, the app continues to suffer from numerous technical issues that have gone unresolved for years. Many users complain about inaccurate battery information and unreliable location tracking. The app frequently shows outdated or wrong data, which can be frustrating when you’re depending on it for safety and monitoring.
What’s even more frustrating is the thought that if Life360’s data quality matched the performance of the app itself, the situation might be a bit more tolerable. Instead, users are left dealing with constant glitches while Life360 profits from their personal information. This creates a frustrating experience for anyone who expects a reliable service.
Expensive Plans for What You Get
Why Life360 is bad becomes even clearer when you consider its pricing. While the app offers a free version that includes many features, the paid plans can quickly add up, especially when considering what you actually get in return. The cheapest paid plan, Silver, costs $9.99 per month or $79.99 per year, which seems steep for what it offers.
Even though the paid plans unlock additional features—like more days of location history, more “places” for alerts, and the ability for everyone in the “Circle” to benefit from one paid subscription—it still doesn’t feel like a great value. After recent changes to its plans, Life360 is no longer as affordable as it once was, making it hard to justify the cost, especially when many of its core features are available in the free version. For families who are already paying for a variety of other services, adding Life360’s pricey subscription can feel like an unnecessary expense for something that doesn’t always deliver reliable results.
No Offline Mode
Another downside of Life360 is that it doesn’t work without an internet connection. The app requires constant data or Wi-Fi to track locations, send updates, and sync information. This means if you’re in an area with poor or no signal, the app becomes useless.
For an app that charges users for premium features, it’s frustrating that it doesn’t offer offline functionality. This limitation makes it unreliable in situations where connectivity is essential, adding to the list of reasons why Life360 falls short despite its expensive subscription plans.
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While Life360 may initially appear as a helpful tool for family safety and peace of mind, the concerns surrounding its privacy practices, data selling, and constant surveillance make it clear why Life360 is bad for many users.
From selling location data to third parties, even to children’s information, to eroding trust within families through constant tracking, the app’s drawbacks far outweigh its benefits. The lack of transparency about data handling, coupled with intrusive features and technical issues, leaves users questioning whether the app truly prioritizes their safety or simply profits off their personal information.
If you’re considering Life360, it’s important to carefully weigh these issues before deciding if it’s the right choice for your family.
