CNET – Feb 14 – Meeting people online can be risky, so developers are designing apps to protect people. With "Circle of 6" users recruits friends when they're in an emergency situation. Users have to register six friends as primary contacts. Tapping the app will display three buttons: A pushpin, a phone call and chat. The pushpin sends an automatic text message, complete with the GPS location, to the six friends. The call button sends the location and a request that they call about an "emergency." The chat icon is in case users just need to talk. Similar apps include OnWatch and PanicGuard. Like Circle of 6, bSafe connects with user's friends and family while out on a date. Apps like Hollaback let people share their stories of harassment with a description of the attacker and location, while SpotCrime+ can help users avoid neighborhoods with high crime rates.
