The California Association of Realtors has teamed up with Toronto-based technology company Guardly to offer its members a mobile application designed to alert others when members are worried about their personal safety.
As part of the partnership, Guardly’s premium mobile app service is available to CAR’s 155,000 members at a discounted $17.99 per year. The service normally costs $19.99 per year. There is also a free version of the app available for download.
With one touch, the app allows users to alert a list of up to 15 predetermined contacts and 911 operators that the user is experiencing an emergency. The app connects users to contacts via phone, email, text messaging, conference call and instant messaging, and sends out a user’s location in real time. Users can also snap and share pictures of a suspicious person or sound an alarm.
Some of these features, including the ability to instantly notify 911, are not available with the free version of the app.
On its website, Guardly advises Realtors to create buddy system groups of five or more colleagues or close friends to notify when worried about personal safety.
The Guardly app is available on the Android, BlackBerry, iPhone and Windows 7 operating platforms.
