# Position reporting via text message

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/position-reporting-via-text-message/401128>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [April 22, 2007, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/position-reporting-via-text-message/401128 "2007-04-22T01:08:12Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Xema](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/9de053/32.png) [@Xema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xema)\
**Post date:** [April 22, 2007, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/position-reporting-via-text-message/401128/1 "2007-04-22T01:08:12Z")

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Though I don’t own one, I understand that GPS-enabled cellphones are common these days.

Do such phones typically offer a feature whereby a text message containing the phone’s current lat/lon position can be sent to a designated recipient? I’m thinking of a pre-programmed feature that would not require the sender to read his lat/lon and use it to compose the message.

(I tried googling this, but didn’t get too far.)

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**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\
**Post date:** [April 22, 2007, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/position-reporting-via-text-message/401128/2 "2007-04-22T03:35:36Z")

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Yeah lots of services do this, included with their “track via Web site” feature. You need to install software on the phone (specific models, with GPS built in) and that’s pretty much it.

Google “phone gps tracking” for lots of services like [this one](http://www.accutracking.com/)