Nowadays, people spend a lot of time scrolling through their social media feeds. According to Statista data, the average social media usage is 147 minutes or 2 hours and 27 minutes per day.
So why does that happen? Because social media platforms are so useful that they become addictive. Older generations needed to do a lot of things just to send a message to one person. But now, people can do it very quickly with direct messages on Instagram. It won’t even take a minute.
Social media platforms also provide users with a wide range. This makes them great tools for business and social activists.
Another reason is that social media connects people with information. You can learn about an event seconds after it has occurred or while it is happening.
However, social media platforms can help solve real world problems. It’s crazy how few social media companies are jumping on that. Therefore, it is always great news when one decides to do something to improve the world.
Instagram recently launched a cool feature called AMBER ALERTS. It’s one of the best things the company has come up with since it started in 2010.
What are AMBER ALERTS?
According to Safeatlast statistics, there are approximately 8 million reports of missing children worldwide. And in the United States, about 2,300 people are reported missing each day. Two years ago, nearly 400,000 young men went missing in the country. These numbers are very high, and something clearly needs to change.
Fortunately, the tech industry decided to step in and make things better. Instagram has decided to do something more important than its mission to overtake TikTok as the number one short video platform. Launched “AMBER ALERTS”, as mentioned above. This feature notifies users of missing children in their area.
Emily Vacher is the director of trust and safety at Meta, the parent company of Instagram, who made the announcement. She says the chances of finding missing children increase significantly when more people search for them. This is true even during the first few hours. And with Instagram’s wide reach and high number of daily active users, they know they can help.
AMBER ALERTS will be available in the United States and 24 other countries.
It’s not an entirely new feature; AMBER Alerts have been on Facebook since 2015. Three years earlier, Google started issuing AMBER Alerts on Google Search and Maps.
Developed in partnership with several organizations. These include the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) in the United States, the International Center for Missing and Exploited Children, and the National Crime Agency in the United Kingdom. Mexico’s Attorney General’s Office, Australian Federal Police, and others also helped make this feature possible.
How will it work
When law enforcement activates AMBER Alerts, users near the area will see the alert on their Instagram feed. It will contain details about the missing child, including photos, a description, and the location of the suspected abduction. Apart from these, any other available information is also included. Users can then share the alert so that their followers can see it to raise awareness.
Alerts are rare and specific to the search area, says Emily Vacher. This means there is an active search nearby if you get an alert. So when that happens, keep your eyes open.
Instagram is the city you list on your profile, IP address and location services to show you alerts. So, if you want help finding missing kids, it’s best to keep the location service turned on.
Instagram is perfect for AMBER Alerts, says Michele DeLaun, president and CEO of the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. It is an image-focused platform, and images are an important tool in the search for missing children. They are more important than names because those who see pictures of children can easily identify them. If all they know are the children’s names, they need to ask the children first. This may alert the hijacker.
On top of being a platform that revolves around images, Instagram has a wide reach. Statista says it has nearly 1 billion monthly active users. So, it will make more people aware of kidnappings in their area. And that could help save babies within a day.
availability
AMBER Alerts on Instagram started on the first day of June this year. The company says it will be available in 25 countries in the coming weeks. Here is a list of countries where the feature will be available:
- Argentina
- Australia
- Belgium
- Bulgaria
- Canada
- Ecuador
- Greece
- Guatemala
- Ireland
- Jamaica
- Korea
- Lithuania
- Luxembourg
- Malaysia
- Malta
- Mexico
- Holland
- New Zealand
- Romania
- South Africa
- Taiwan
- Ukraine
- United kingdom
- The United Arab Emirates
- United State
Are AMBER ALERTS effective?
So, does this program accomplish anything? Or is it one of those things that have great benefit but that everyone ignores? You’ll be glad to hear that things are on the brighter side. According to Meta, Facebook’s AMBER Alerts have helped hundreds of successful child endangerment cases in the United States and around the world.
Two years ago, a couple helped save an 11-year-old girl named Charlotte Moccia in Springfield, Massachusetts. They saw an AMBER alert on Facebook and caught a glimpse of a blue Honda Civic while we were having dinner. Amanda Disley and her husband, the couple, chased the car while reporting to the authority.
During the chase, the couple’s five children were in the car. They knew it was dangerous. But they also knew that if they didn’t come forward, it could be another child’s death.
In another case, in Lakeland, Florida, just a year after the AMBER alert sounded, Caitlin Brown helped rescue a four-year-old girl from her kidnappers.
Therefore, AMBER Alerts is a tested and proven program. Thankfully, it is now available on more platforms. It will help keep children around the world safe. Emily Vacher says Meta is looking forward to continuing this work. We hope the program will be successful. As they say, children are the future.
Why you should be paying attention to AMBERT’s Instagram alerts from yesterday
AMBER ALERTS is a way for Instagram to use its platform to help locate missing children. These alerts are issued by the authorities in cases where a child has been kidnapped and is in danger.
When an AMBER Alert is issued, Instagram will notify users in the affected area, alerting them to the missing child and providing information on what to do if they have any. The alert will also be displayed on the user’s Instagram feed and a link to more information about the missing child.
AMBER ALERTS is a vital tool to help find missing children, as it allows many people to get quick and easy information about the situation. Instagram’s ability to reach a large audience makes it an effective platform for disseminating this important information.
If you receive an AMBER ALERTS on Instagram, it is imperative that you pay attention to it and take it seriously. You should contact the authorities immediately if you have any information that might help locate a missing child. By working together, we can help bring lost children home safely.
How you can use AMBERT ALERTS to save someone’s life from your phone
As an Instagram user, you have the power to help locate missing children through the use of AMBER ALERTS. The authorities issue these alerts in cases where a child has been kidnapped and is in danger. When an AMBER Alert is issued, Instagram will notify users in the affected area, alerting them to the missing child and providing information on what to do if they have any. The alert will also be displayed on your Instagram feed, and a link will be provided to more information about the missing child.
It is essential to pay attention to AMBER ALERTS and take them seriously. If you received one on Instagram, it’s imperative that you do your part to help bring the missing child home safely. Here’s how you can use Instagram’s AMBER Alerts to help:
- Pay Attention to the Alert: When you receive an AMBER ALERT notification, be sure to take the time to read it carefully. This will give you all the information you need to understand the situation and how you can help.
- Alert sharing: Instagram makes it easy to share the alert with your followers by providing a share button within the notification. By sharing the alert, you can help spread the word and increase the chances of a missing child being found.
- Contact the authorities: If you have any information that might help locate a missing child, it is important to contact the authorities immediately. You can find contact information for the authorities in the AMBER Alert notice or by following the link in the alert.
With AMBER Alerts for Instagram, you can play a critical role in helping to locate missing children and get them home safely. So next time you get an AMBER alert on Instagram, feel free to do your part and help.
date: December 28, 2022 / Categories: interesting, / Author: Drees rich
