[natch]

In real life, people can and do install apps on the devices of other people.

You ignore this possibility, but let's not pretend: The app can be installed by a suspicious family member who knows the password (as many family members do, in the real off-HN world), and then hidden from the user of the device.

This is absolutely the definition of spyware, even if the author either A) sincerely believes there is a legitimate purpose here, or B) contrived a clever cover story for it.

I don't know which is true, A or B, but it's quite remarkable that people would supposedly sign their real names to reviews of such an app.

[andrewstuart2]

And google plus can be installed and configured to share location with someone else. Yet it's a clearly just a social app, though it doesn't show a notification that it's sharing your location.

Just because something can be used maliciously doesn't make it malicious. When people take that idea to the next level, we get abuse like Microsoft shutting down no-ip.

[saalweachter]

I'm not familiar with the Google Plus location sharing, but I seem to recall using the old Google location sharing app, and receiving a periodic email from Google reminding me that it was turned on.