Uber is introducing a new safety feature today that allows a family member to track where you're going. Now when you're using Uber's Family Profile feature, the family account's creator will receive a notification as soon as you start a trip; tapping it will bring them to a map inside the Uber app, showing where your ride is going in real time.

The intention is to let another member of your family follow along in case things go off course, as has happened here and there in the past.

You have to switch billing methods to hide where you're going

Uber already allows riders to share real-time maps of where they're traveling, but they have to specifically choose to share it and select who they want to share it with. This feature, called Trip Tracker, simplifies that by always sending a tracking map to whoever in your family created your shared account.

Family accounts were launched by Uber two months ago. They allow up to 10 people to join a single account, which handles all payments. At the time, Uber encouraged people to let friends join when you want to cover their bill. Now that it's letting you track them, that may not be so appealing. (Although, trip information would have shown up later in the account owner's receipt, but the real-time aspect makes it feel a bit stranger.)

On one hand, this feature may be irritating if you don't want to share where you're going every time you travel; on the other hand, you can choose to use a different billing method, and then you'll no longer be tracked. Since the feature is aimed at families, it seems more like a way of comforting parents when their kids are out on a ride .