UX Designers are creating apps which help ensure external safety among users
As the world becomes more digitally advanced, the past century has revealed that SmartPhones can help us in pretty much every situation. By owning a SmartPhone it is no longer necessary to bring out credit cards, cameras, pocket mirrors, maps, watches and much more as our mobiles can do everything for us. And now through UX Design, our SmartPhones can help ensure safety for users in dangerous situations.
For centuries women in particular have feared walking home alone, and due to the global pandemic’s lockdown enforcement, the numbers of domestic abuse victims have increased horrifically. However, while our SmartPhones don’t have the power to defeat violent predators, certain apps and features can help victims get in contact with the police, secure their safety, and decrease anxieties of walking the streets alone.
In support of safety and emotional security, Digital Influx are here to guide you through which apps can help save you from dangerous situations;
Self defence apps for walking home alone
Ever worried about walking home alone in the dark and wondered what you might do if your worst scenario came true? Well this is an extremely common anxiety, so UX designers have decided to create apps and features with the sole aim of rescuing users from this kind of situation.
Safe Trek
Created by a group of students at the University of Missouri, SafeTrek, which uses the pressure sensor of smartphone touchscreens to create a call for alarm by a mere lifting of the finger, aims to make users feel safer when walking home alone. The app solely used for rescuing those being followed by potential predators calls the police when users simply lift their fingers. By pressing down on the screen, the app will ask for a four digit number. Users should ignore the code and remove their hold to call the police. Cleverly, the designers of SafeTrek who were shocked by the number of women who feared walking home from their classes, used GPS and location tools built into SmartPhones so that the police can swiftly find the location of the user. If users are not in danger, they should enter the code. However, while the app is an ultimate lifesaver, it is currently only available in America.
bSafe
bSafe doesn’t just provide rescue from the police, but allows friends and family of your choosing to know when you are in vulnerable situations by sharing your location. For when in dangerous situations, the app’s designers have added an SOS button which can be activated merely by touch, and for premium users can be activated via a code word; an innovative and effective method for contacting help without making it obvious to the predator. The app will then start a live video stream and audio so that your friends and family on the app can phone the police and direct them to the right location. Additionally, users can schedule a fake phone call for when they are walking home to ward off any predators- a creative spin on a traditional safety method (just what we need).
LifeLine Response
LifeLine Response is perfect for safety protection and UX designers have thought carefully about activation, ensuring that the police can be alerted as quickly and simply as possible. Users should hold their thumbs down on the app for the entirety of their journey- only letting go when arriving safely at their destination. They will then type in a security code to announce arrival, however the app provides a time limit and if the code isn’t provided in time, the authorities will be alerted.
Safetipin
A great technique for avoiding danger is by avoiding dangerous areas in the first place and Safetipin can help you. Safetipin provides the safety ratings of certain areas before users approach them so that a safer route can be mapped out if necessary. Users will also be alerted when approaching potentially dangerous locations. Additionally, family and friends can track users’ locations via the StayWithMe feature, carefully designed by UX Designers. Moreover, you can track your own safety ratings through the MySafetipin feature, focusing on lighting, mood, location etc.. so that you can recognise your own anxieties of specific areas.
So, if you often feel anxious about walking alone, don’t worry about remembering your pepper spray or saving your screaming voice because UX designers have ensured that your SmartPhones are here to save you.
Domestic abuse
The global pandemic and enforced lockdown has seen an increase in victims of domestic violence so a mass of various protection tools have emerged, including apps which contact the police;
MagazineLuiza
On International Women’s Day, Brazillian magazine MagazineLuiza took the popular saying translated into “stick the spoon” (warns people from interfering in others’ relationships) to help domestic abuse victims. Having already created a SmartPhone app for their brand, users can merely pretend to buy a silver spoon priced at $1.80 (180 being the number for the women’s crime line in Brazil). By clicking the buy button the authorities will be informed and will instantly be on their way to rescue victims. This innovative rescue feature is a clever method for alerting the police without the perpetrators becoming aware of their upcoming arrest.
Iphone SOS
While all phones have the option to make an emergency call without logging onto the device, some people in danger may not have the time or ability to do so. Luckily, Apple Designers have come to empathise with such inabilities and have created a new feature for their latest devices wherein users merely tap the lock button 5 times so that their devices immediately begin an emergency call whereby help is alerted.
Therefore, not only are SmartPhones useful for keeping in touch with friends and playing games, but with the help of UX designers, can also act as creative tools for securing your safety. For more information, feel free to contact us at info@digitalinflux.com and via our social media pages.
Author: Tilly O’Brien
