How smartphone can help find missing children
technology has made it possible for
parents to track the movement of their children. This can prevent the
children from getting lost or find them, if they are missing. Below are
some useful features for this purpose:
Lassy Project
The goal of Lassy Project, according to
www.parents.com, is to minimise the amount of time it takes to send out
an alert that your child has gone missing. Unlike the Amber Alert, Lassy
Project provides an image of the missing child and a real time map
showing the coordinates of the child’s last known location. It works in
seconds, not hours, and only alerts relevant people in the immediate
area (the app is free on iPhone, iPad, Android).
Find my kids – footprints
Using the GPS in real time, this app
helps you keep track of and automatically locate where your child goes
with his phone. For instance, if he is travelling alone, you can confirm
that he has arrived at a specific destination, or if he is meeting up
with friends, they can confirm each other’s locations.
Location information is never shared
with anyone else beyond those who have permission to see it, and the
data is saved for a later review.
Even though the app is free, parents
will need a subscription for the tracking feature. Download is free but
the service requires a monthly fee on iPhone and iPad.
Missing child alerts
Missing child alerts mobile app can be
found on Google Play Store. It helps notify and rapidly spread the word
through social media when a child goes missing.
*Simply download the app and choose your
state – that is it! You will automatically receive updates when a new
child goes missing in your state.
*Click the “Settings” tab to change your state.
Sygic family
Sygic family keeps your family safe by
allowing you to check the real-time location and the battery levels of
your family members’ smartphones. You can also track your children’s
whereabouts, or have them checked periodically to let you know where
they are and if they have arrived at their destinations safely.
The app also has an in-built messaging
system, which lets you send messages for free over an Internet
connection. You can also set ‘Safe or Unsafe zones’ – a notification
will be sent to you when they enter or leave these zones. There is also
an SOS button available in this app, which lets you send out your exact
location at the touch of a button.
Life360
Life360 has the GPS locations of your
family members via their smartphones, a panic button, and alerts when
someone enters a preset zone (for instance, gets home). It also lets you
check where they have been (location history); where to get help in an
emergency (hospitals, police stations), and allows you to have group
chats.
Google Latitude
Google Latitude is less of an app but
more of a tracking tool. It allows you to see where your family members
are on a map. To use it, go to Google Latitude and start adding your
family members via their Gmail contacts. When they accept, you can see
their locations on Google Map on your phone.
Their locations will be at the
background even when the app is closed or when your smartphone is
locked. The app is not restricted to family members; you can use it to
check just about anyone’s whereabouts, provided they are on Google
Latitude.
MobileKids
This is a monitoring device that sends
parents alerts when kids have been using their mobile phones in the
middle of the night; when they add a new unrecognised contact, or when
they download a new app.
Parents will also get statistics about their children’s mobile usage, which they can use to set usage limits (premium account).
There is still the much sought-after
location feature, with a slight twist. With the SOS button and Check-in
feature, the child can request their parents to track their movement
live via the GPS tracking, something like remotely ‘walking’ them to
their destination.
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