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Facebook 'Safety Check' Lets Friends Know You're OK After a Major Disaster

Posted by timothy on from the mom-please-stop-the-prank-alerts dept.

rtoz (2530056) writes Facebook has launched a new Tool called "Safety Check." The Facebook Safety Check tool will notify your friends so that they know you're OK after a major disaster. In times of disaster or crisis, people turn to Facebook to check on loved ones and get updates. "During a major disaster, Safety Check will help you: Let friends and family know you're safe; Check on others in the affected area; Mark your friends as safe ... When the tool is activated after a natural disaster and if you're in the affected area, you'll receive a Facebook notification asking if you're safe. [Facebook] will determine your location by looking at the city you have listed in your profile, your last location if you've opted in to the Nearby Friends product, and the city where you are using the internet. ... If you're safe, you can select "I'm Safe" and a notification and News Feed story will be generated with your update. Your friends can also mark you as safe." More creepy, or more reassuring?

6 of 130 comments (clear)

  1. Would sooner have a Dislike button than this by haruchai · · Score: 5, Insightful

    How fucking hard is that.

    --
    Pain is merely failure leaving the body
  2. yeah, going with not creepy. by Sowelu · · Score: 5, Insightful

    For the audience this is aimed at (which isn't most slashdotters), definitely reassuring. Facebook has a *huge* base of people who just use it to keep in touch with family's lives, and the ability to mark Grandma as okay even if her internet is down is pretty appealing.

    Also good for antisocial people, you can avoid being bothered by a flood of people who are just checking up.

    1. Re:yeah, going with not creepy. by Obfuscant · · Score: 4, Insightful

      and the ability to mark Grandma as okay even if her internet is down is pretty appealing.

      The Internet will be one of the first things to go down in a disaster. The fact that Grandma hasn't told Facebook she's ok because she can't get to Facebook will only scare Grandma's relatives. Same for Grandpa, Pa, Ma, Jr., Missie, etc. This will drive an overload of existing resources as panicky people outside the area try even harder to reach in to find out loved ones status', because my goodness if they haven't said they're ok using this app, they are probably not.

      In other words, the existence of this "feature" will become like email -- assumed to be 100% reliable and fast, and if someone hasn't clicked the "I'm OK" button the assumption won't be "the internet is down and they can't, be patient", it will be "they're dead and cannot click a simple button. Panic!"

    2. Re:yeah, going with not creepy. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Countdown before we have the first 911 caller because "they didn't say they were OK on Facebook!"

  3. This is the only time I use Facebook by mspohr · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Have had family members in NZ earthquake and a few other misc disasters. Facebook was the best way to find out if they were ok.

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    I don't read your sig. Why are you reading mine?
  4. Re:How is it creepy? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Insightful

    ISTM that panicky mothers would *love* this...

    Creepy? Who, us?

    Rest assured we will not release this data. After all, we don't release or sell any of your other data. Don't be alarmed that the largest human database in the world will start tracking all those infected, sick, or in trouble in some way using this "feature", building a hot-spot map for the CDC and the like (can you say targeted medical ads?).

    Don't worry though. Your Obamacare personalized health care plan rates won't go up much. And we won't sell this information to potential employers as a nefarious way to discriminate against those who might abuse medical benefits.

    We pinky promise.