Humanetek, a local software firm, has developed a free life saving mobile app ‘Mohafiz’ for Pakistani people in the wake of the APS attack.
In an exclusive interview with Pakistan Today, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Humanetek Fahd Mahmood Khan said: “This mobile software ‘Mohafiz’ will not only send alert messages to two to seven mobile numbers, but it can also help with emergencies like getting blood transfusions etc.”
Khan said that he developed this software in a 10-month period after the attack on APS in Peshawar. Through this app, everybody can easily alert their colleagues, friends and close relatives about the emergency situation.
During the last two months, more than 30,000 people in the country have downloaded the app and the Mohafiz has saved the life of a kidnapped girl in Rawalpindi, Khan said. He said that a girl had sent an alert message to her friends using the app when she was being kidnapped in Rawalpindi and because of the alert message her friends reached the spot in time and saved her life.
He said that the software provides an easy and free way to reach out to your emergency contacts at the press of a button, when you are in a life-threatening situation – “be it a robbery, a terrorist attack, a car accident or a medical emergency.”
“When in a crisis, all you need to do is launch the application and press a button, which will automatically transmit a message to your friends.
ICE CONTACTS:
Pressing the red button immediately sends out an SMS with your location and a general distress message to your ICE (in case of emergency) contacts, when there is no time to classify the nature of the situation, Orange button is for when the situation is evolving and there is time to classify the exact nature of the emergency you are in.
He said the APS attack of December 16, 2014 was a game changer for the average Pakistani. The times that we live in pretty much mean that our lives and the lives of our loved ones are vulnerable to various threats, every day, all of the time. From medical emergencies, house fires, road accidents, armed robberies to full blown terrorist attacks, we remain vulnerable, he added.
He said that the government usually doesn’t have the funds to respond to every one of our emergencies in time due to a lack of infrastructure, manpower limitations etc. In such circumstances, the population has to work together, hand in hand with government first responders to protect ourselves and our way of life. The people have to come together to bridge the gaps that exist, he added.
With the Mohafiz mobile application, we are not only encouraging people to become each other’s mohafiz, but are also making the process of government support and intervention a lot simpler and more effective, by allowing us to reach out to one another, as well as the first responders at the press of a button. Anyone who has ever gone through such a situation would already have a better idea of how this app can work for them.
When you download Mohafiz, it asks you to enter your phone number so that it can verify you as a genuine user by supplying you with a code through SMS, Khan explained. Once you enter the code the app will start working. Next it allows you to enter your personal life saving information specifically asking you for your name, gender, city, blood group (for your own use and in case you are willing to donate blood should the need ever arise). There is an option to also supply information on any existing medical condition that you may be living with such as High BP, Diabetes, Cancer etc.
It then asks you to nominate a minimum of two and a maximum of seven ICE contacts by selecting their numbers from your contacts list. As soon as this is done, an SMS is sent to these ICE contacts that they have been nominated by you to provide assistance in your state of emergency.
Khan explained that in an actual emergency situation, all you have to do is click on the application widget to launch the application. The screen will present two buttons; Red and Orange. The Red button is to be pressed if it is an immediate emergency and you don’t have time to classify the nature of the emergency. Pressing the red button immediately sends out an SMS with your location and a general distress message to your ICE contacts. It is necessary that you are connected to Wi-Fi or data to send your location. If your GPRS is active then the same will be transmitted through Twitter, provided that your app is synced with them (which can easily be done in the settings tab).
Khan said that you can press the orange button if you are involved in an evolving situation, because it presents options to classify the exact nature of emergency that you are experiencing. This transmits the same message as the red button but also adds the exact nature of the emergency that you face so that your ICE contacts are better prepared to deal with the situation threatening you. The more information your ICE contact has, the better their response will be. This function can also be linked to government first responders such as 1122, NDMA, Rangers and Police.
An additional feature of Mohafiz is that it keeps on giving you news feeds about security related news in the area that you are in. This allows you to stay abreast of any developing situations so that you may plan your routes effectively, Khan explained.