Snappy newsletters. Simple Facebook sharing. Spirited comments. Sweet features are waiting… GET THEM NOW!

Hot on Facebook
Guy Buys $123 Safe on eBay, Finds $26,000 Inside Seller tries to get half the cash back, fails »

Facebook App 'Nose' Where U R

SNIFF allows users to pinpoint cell phone locations

By Michael Quinn,  Newser User

Posted Apr 3, 2008 12:02 PM CDT

(Newser) – A Facebook application launching in the UK will put people’s friends on the map—in real time, reports the Times. The Social Network Integrated Friend Finder or ‘Sniff’ app lets users pinpoint a friend’s cell phone down to the nearest 650 feet. Privacy is a priority: users need to give permission before they can be tracked, and they can specify who can and can't zero in on them.

Accessed through Facebook itself or a cell phone, Sniff triangulates a phone’s position from nearby base stations, and then texts the ‘sniffer’ its location. However, some think the system is open to abuse by inquisitive employers or curious partners, and others find the prices sniffy: The planned charge is $1.50 per trace, making the world’s most popular text—Where R U?—still cheaper to send.

The Sniff application will be able to pinpoint mobile phones down to the nearest 650 feet.
The Sniff application will be able to pinpoint mobile phones down to the nearest 650 feet.   (AP Photo)
Soon UK users of Facebook will be able to sniff out their friends, much like Uno the beagle, posing after eating steak at Sardi's Restaurant  in New York, in this Feb. 13, 2008 file photo.
Soon UK users of Facebook will be able to sniff out their friends, much like Uno the beagle, posing after eating steak at Sardi's Restaurant in New York, in this Feb. 13, 2008 file photo.   (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II, file)
This photo photo provided by the Medill News Service shows a Facebook web page seen in Washington, Thursday, Feb. 14, 2008.
This photo photo provided by the Medill News Service shows a Facebook web page seen in Washington, Thursday, Feb. 14, 2008.   (AP Photo/Medill, News Service, Lillian Cunningham)
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow
To report an error on this story, notify our editors.
A snapshot of the day's best news stories.
 
COMMENTS
Be the first to comment on this story.

More Newser Stories

Cell Carriers Roll Out Unlimited Calls for $100/Month

UK Slaps Chatty Drivers With Jail

Cell Bills Trump Land Line Charges for 1st Time

How Siri Could Hurt Everyone's Cell Service

Customers Not Happy About Verizon's New $2 Fee


NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS
Other Sites We Like:   24/7 Wall St.   |   Betty Confidential   |   BuzzFeed   |   Cracked   |   Fark   |   Timelines   |   The Frisky   |   Geek Sugar   |   NewsOne