Why
SafeNow?

The idea

There are “smart matching” apps for almost any area of life these days. There is a similar principle behind all of them: A has a need, B offers a service, and a platform has been set up to bring the two sides together. There’s Uber for getting around, Tinder for love, Wolt for food, and Airbnb for places to stay. But what about personal safety?

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Until now, the only option was to call the police. Although many places have a security personnel on site, they often don’t hear in time – or even at all – when their help is needed. Some areas are just too big or too hard to monitor, or privacy concerns mean there is no surveillance, such as in restroom areas. How can we close this critical gap in our existing safety structure?

Here at SafeNow, our goal is to change that: With our app, people who need help can send an alert to local security personnel with just one click. This is made possible by “SafeNow zones.” Inside an area defined by an event organizer or the operator of a certain space, helpers and people who need help can use the SafeNow app to quickly find each other.

On-site security personnel receive an alert when things go wrong, telling them immediately who needs help. Thanks to precision position location technology, security guards receive the exact location, down to within a few feet, so they know exactly where to go. The system can even tell which floor or room inside a building. This enables never-before-seen speed in bringing helpers and those who need help together.

In addition, SafeNow users can connect with friends and family in private groups in the app, regardless of SafeNow zones, in order to look out for each other better in emergency situations. This means all group members are able to send out a loud alert that sounds even when the other person’s phone is in Do Not Disturb mode or silenced. Since the alert is not a standard text message or phone call, everyone in the group immediately knows something serious is going on, along with who needs their help and where.