April « 2012 «

April 18, 2012

New Tech Provides Secure Freedom to Autistic Children, Adults

Filed under: Alzheimer's Wanderer Locator, Autism Eloper Locator, Child GPS Tracking, Children, Distracted Driving, Family, Personal Emergency Response System, Phones, Press Release, Safety, Security, Wireless Communications, _SecuraFone RSS, _SecuraTrac RSS — Tags: Autism, Child GPS, Children, Distracted Driving, Emergency Response, GPS Tracking — admin @ 9:00 am

Cellular device and smart phone app uses GPS location alerts to increase personal safety. SecuraFone®, a new mobile application debuting from SecuraTrac®, and the LifeTrac® MobileProtector™ can ease difficulties faced by people with Autism, empowering them to carryout daily activities safely and independently.

Hermosa Beach, CA, April 18, 2012 -(PR.com)- While April is National Autism Awareness Month, for children and adults affected by the disorder, every day of the year is a challenge. SecuraFone®, a new mobile application debuting from SecuraTrac®, and the LifeTrac® MobileProtector™ can ease difficulties faced by people with Autism, empowering them to carryout daily activities safely and independently.

A powerful family safety solution, SecuraFone can be downloaded to any iPhone or Droid transforming the smartphone into a GPS locator with an emergency SOS button. Parents and caregivers can use SecuraFone to monitor the location of children or patients via text message or email alerts and their secure online account. If a patient or child encounters a dangerous situation and needs help, SecuraFone can be used to send an instantaneous text message including location details and a call for help to priority contacts with the press of one button. Simultaneously, a phone call is automatically placed to the primary emergency contact.

In addition, SecuraFone can be used to receive proactive location alerts through the use of SecuraFences or virtual borders that are created by the account holder. SecuraFences can be drawn around a home or school, even an entire neighborhood or town. Every time a SecuraFence is crossed, the SecuraFone app sends a text and/or email alert to the account holder providing peace of mind and reassurance. The SecuraFone app makes it easier for parents to keep watch over young children and provides adults affected by the disorder to safely experience more independence.

Chris Holbert, CEO of SecuraTrac stated, “As children with Autism age and many of them become a bit more independent, the power of SecuraFone or our other mobile safety solutions increases. Essentially, it allows families of high-functioning Autistic adolescents and children to give them a bit more freedom in the community – buy groceries, go to a movie, and learn through experience – much as their children’s peers do that may not have Autism.”

Similar in features to the SecuraFone app, the LifeTrac MobileProtector functions as a limited cellular phone for young children and people who do not need a smart phone. The MobileProtector has programmable speed-dial buttons and an SOS button that can be pressed in emergencies. An unlimited number of contacts can be programmed into the MobileProtector to receive calls or text message and email notifications for SecuraFence or other alerts.

SecuraFone is currently available for iPhone® and Android® phones and is available in a free basic version with the option to upgrade for additional features with an $8.99 monthly fee. SecuraFone can be downloaded by visiting the SecuraFone website or through the app store on a mobile device. A SecuraFone application is also being developed for Blackberry and Windows Mobile devices. The LifeTrac MobileProtector can be purchased by visiting www.lifetrac.com and a variety of usage programs are available for the device.

About SecuraTrac

SecuraTrac® develops, markets, and sells a suite of mobile health and safety solutions. SecuraTrac is dedicated to bringing families closer together and improving employee safety through GPS location based technology and state-of-the-art, easy-to-use websites. SecuraTrac’s SecuraPAL® Guardian solution for children is the recipient of The National Parenting Center Seal of Approval, and their LifeTrac® MobileProtector™ solution for seniors was nominated for Frost & Sullivan’s Best Practices Awards for Excellence in Mobile & Wireless Communication Technology. SecuraTrac® has also developed an award-winning GPS safety app, SecuraFone®, for Android® and iPhone® platforms as well as a free, life-saving service called SecuraChild™ that leverages crowd sourcing and social media to broadcast and accelerate the location of missing children. The company is headquartered in Hermosa Beach, CA. For more information please visit www.securatrac.com.

Contact:
Laura Baumgartner
630-299-9616
www.securatrac.com

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April 1, 2012

CW33 in Dallas - 911 Dispatch Struggles to Locate Cell Phone Callers

Filed under: Online, Personal Emergency Response System, Phones, Safety, Security, TV, Wireless Communications, _SecuraTrac RSS — admin @ 9:00 am

By Doug Magditch

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ARLINGTON, Texas —

If you’re calling 911, you’re probably not having the best day. There’s a good chance you won’t be thinking clearly.

So, help yourself now, before you need help.

“Most of our calls, we have no idea where they are calling from,” said Sha Curtis, Arlington Interim Communications Manager.

Our vision’s been clouded by television dramas. Once upon a time, dispatchers knew where you were calling from. That was back in the days of the landline. Now, the line’s been cut.

“They believe, just based on television, that their address is just automatically populated when they deal 911. That’s not the case,” said Curtis.

In Arlington, 78% of calls to dispactch come from cell phones. When a cell phone call comes in, the system estimates the caller’s location. That estimation could be within a few meters or a few miles.

“What we get is an estimated number of meters that we use to convert. It’s never an address. So, we have to work to get the address,” said Curtis.

If you hang up without giving a location, dispatch has to track you down. First the dispatcher will call you back. If there’s no response, he/she will call you cellular provider. That could result in an address, but not necessarily where you called from.

A new smartphone app, Securafone, may help. You can program in phone numbers and email addresses for emergency contacts, like friends and family members. You can also program in 911 as a emergency call number. So, if you’re stranded, you can call all of your emergency contacts at once.

Whoever you put in as a contact will get an alert, along with a GPS location of where the alert came from. They’ll know exactly where you are and where you’re going.

Only problem is, dispatch won’t get the GPS location, but whoever does can call in to assist the dispatcher.

“It goes to a Google map and it shows exactly where it was. Now, he has an option whether he should call her directly and ask her to verify if she’s having an emergency or he can go right to Arlington PD and say, ‘my sister just sent me an alert and she’s on main and first,’” explained Robert Tomlinson, Director of Sales for Securatrac.

While the system isn’t fool-proof, in an emergency, every little bit can help.