The Santa spy cam that’s caused a major parenting debate (you can definitely see why)

The run-up to Christmas is prime threaten-your-kids season, isn't it?

I mean; let's face it: If you haven't threatened to call Santa at least twice this week already, you are certainly keeping it together better than the rest of us and thankfully, it's finally Christmas Eve. When it comes to keeping our kids' behaviour in check, there is one gadget that's being used by many parents around the globe to do just that – and yet many will argue that this is taking things a step too far. Curious? Parents, would you convince your kids you have installed a surveillance camera in the house so Santa can record their every move? Nope? Too much? Well, that’s the idea behind the Elf Surveillance Dummy Security Camera. Oh, and to really scare the kids into behaving, the camera has a red light to warn disobedient children that they are about to end up on the naughty list. It's also marketed as the security camera to "keep your kids in line|" which sounds a little hardcore to us. However, the reviews on Amazon are rather divided, with one parent writing: “It’s quite inexpensive, so you can save your money for a child psychologist a few years down the line.” Priced around the £5/€6 mark, it has proved popular since it was first released but we'll be steering away from this one, thanks very much.   Hm... What do YOU think, parents? Light-hearted fun and no worse than the Elf on the Shelf, whose job it also is to report back to Santa – or just a bit too much? Let us know in the comments or tweet us at @Herfamilydotie