A new app has been launched that is especially designed for people that are going through domestic violence and family violence. This app is the first app to be created especially to help domestic violence victims and will allow them information and access to services so that they can have a trustworthy person to contact in order to call for help if needed.
The app will feature a GPS system that will allow the victim to put out an alert for help so that the recipient of the message can figure out what is going on and get some assistance for the victim. The app is called Aurora and has been developed by the NSW Government. The app is intended to help save lives by including information that could be life saving to the victim. It is also very easy to use and can be obtained anonymously.
A messaging tool also is included in the app in order to send out messages so that the victim can select friends to send an SMS to. There are pre-made messages which will include messages to call emergency services or the police if needed. The design of the app was figured out in collaboration with the NSW Police Force and was designed with the idea in mind that most violence against women and girls takes place within the home and that they may not have access to any other personal items other than their phones if there is an emergency violent situation occurring.
The app was also designed that so that it will be easy to use in times of emergency and also so that the partner of the victim or whoever else is the perpetrator of the violence could not easily discover what it was used for. This is designed not only to protect the victim but also to remind the victim that a helping hand is there if the hand is needed because there is an emergency taking place. Victims often do not have a lot of time to get out of a situation or to call for help before the situation escalates so the creators of the app decided that they would also make it possible to use the messaging system to call out for help with just three taps of the phone pad so that the victim did not have to bother with trying to send a text message or trying to call the police by hand if the situation escalated and they were unable to get to the phone and dial the phone or text under normal circumstances.
The initial research that was done also indicated that technology especially mobile phone technology could help greatly in attending to domestic violence issues by making assistance available at the touch of a button. The app is currently available for the iPhone as well as the Android mobile operating systems. The app can be downloaded for free from the iTunes App Store or from the Google Play store.
Another very useful site to report crime is: helpsolvemycrime.com.au
Link: http://www.women.nsw.gov.au/news/items/aurora
About the author