Walking home alone at night can be creepy, when unknown shadows and eerie sounds contribute to feelings of high anxiety and quick glances over the shoulder.
Now, there’s an app to help ease your worries!
Two years ago, Zach Winkler from the University of Missouri realized the need for a smartphone app that could easily call for help in the case of an emergency. Along with three friends, Winkler decided to create an app in order to “tackle the problem that the campus blue light system was failing to solve.” The answer to this problem? SafeTrek.
For $3 per month, SafeTrek allows for a safer commute at any time of day. Once launched, the app asks you to keep your finger on a blue sensor on the screen labeled “Hold Until Safe!” If you remove your finger, you will be prompted to type in a four-digit pin, which registers that you made it home safely. Failure to type the pin results in a direct call to the local police – connected with the phone’s GPS system, the app tells the police the exact location of where to find you.
So why should everyone download this app (And they should)?
It is normal to feel unsafe while walking alone; every student and adult has experienced the unsettling sensation of anxiety on a quiet night, even for just a minute or two, if not more.
The ability to eliminate this issue and provide safety through your cellphone is revolutionary; most young adults have phones in their pockets at all times anyway, and there is no extra hassle of carrying around a separate tracking device.
The effortless act of placing a finger on your phone screen is not the only plus: there is also absolutely no sound involved in typing the quick pin or calling the police. If you ever find yourself in a dangerous situation, a possible attacker would have no idea that the police were on their way.
“SafeTrek was developed by college students, for college students,” states the app’s website. If you are a college student, male of female, you should be downloading the app before the next time you go out. As the app’s popularity is spreading across the country, students on many college campuses feel more secure – SafeTrek is definitely worth the few dollars for more peace of mind.
Even if younger or older than college-aged, SafeTrek is an available resource to keep you protected. The Huffington Post reported that about half of the app’s users are between the ages of 18 and 24, and around 20 percent of subscribers are between 13 and 18 years old. Also, ninety-five percent of its users are women.
Whether you are walking your dog at night, making your way back to your dorm after a late night in the library or a party, or simply going to your car from a friend’s apartment, SafeTrek is a necessary component of staying safe on a college campus or in other areas of life.
There is no reason to continue feeling unsafe when the solution fits into the palms of our hands.
