My child stopped sharing their position: how am I told, and what can I do?

When you are told

You are told if you are a guardian of the circle and the “Off” box is unchecked for that child in that circle (Manage child, card “What Leo can share with this circle”, Leo standing here for the child’s first name). The app says so under the box: “You are told if Leo stops sharing”. As long as “Off” is checked, which is the default, the child can stop without you being told.

The child knows you will be: before stopping, the app asks them for a confirmation that names you. See Can a child stop sharing their position?.

What you see

• An announcement or a notification: “Leo stopped sharing their position”. With the app open, it is an announcement at the top of the screen; otherwise, a notification with a sound (on Android, category “Sharing alerts”). Both open your conversation with the child. At the resume, you likewise get “Leo is sharing their position again”.
• In your conversation with the child: their latest stop appears as a card, with the button “Ask Leo to resume”. Older stops, resumes and your own requests stay as dated lines: the trace does not vanish with the notification.
• In Manage child: “Sharing stopped since 14:02”, with the same button.
• On the map: the child is flagged like any member who no longer shares their position.

What you can do

Ask, never force. “Ask Leo to resume” sends the child “Sophie is asking you to share your position again”, with a button that fits whatever stops the sharing: “Resume”, “Go back online” or “Choose a mode”. On your side, the card shows “Request sent · 14:25” then “You can ask again at 14:30.”: one request every 5 minutes at most. When the child resumes, it shows “Sharing resumed · 14:35”.

Nothing a guardian does turns sharing on remotely, neither checking or unchecking a box, nor the request. The conversation with the child is also the place to talk about it.

What Fenzly cannot see

The notice covers the stops made in the app. A phone that is switched off or in airplane mode, or an uninstalled app, tells nobody; the location permission removed in the phone’s settings is only announced the next time the app opens. In those cases, the map shows “Last contact”, followed by the time, once the phone has not connected for 3 hours. A stop made without network is announced to you when the connection returns.

The stop notice, the resume notice and your request travel end-to-end encrypted: the server does not know that a child stopped or resumed sharing. To choose the modes offered to the child, see What can a guardian decide about a child’s position sharing?.