Smartphone App To Help Keep Trick Or Treaters Safe
MIAMI (CBS4) – Pint sized ghosts, goblins and all sorts of 'creatures of the night' will be roaming South Florida neighborhoods Halloween night in search of treats.
Some parents, however, may be scared their children may find a trick instead; they're worried who their kids will meet on the other side of the door. But peace of mind this Halloween could be just a smartphone app away.
It's called Life360 Offender Search and it uses GPS to find your location then points out sex offenders in the area. Fausto Guzman, the older brother of 7 and 11 year old brothers, said he didn't know there's two sex offender living in his same apartment building.
"It is a big concern for me, for my brothers, at night trick or treating around this neighborhood and the sexual predators actually grabbing them," Guzman said.
He says he didn't know such technology existed, but would use it.
"My word goes out to the parents, take care of your children cause you don't know who's out there," said Guzman.
Sex offenders have restrictions on Halloween to ensure children are safe.
"They cannot have their porch lights on, they cannot decorate their residence with Halloween stuff, if children do in fact knock on their door they're not allowed to open their door," said Miami-Dade police Detective Alvaro Zabaleta.
With so many ghouls and goblins out on Halloween night, there are other precautions you can take to ensure their safety.
"Some of the Halloween costumes are dark and they'll be a lot of cars out, try to have something on them that you can see like a blinking red light, or something fluorescent," said Zabaleta.
Guzman said the app will help and so will keeping a watchful eye on his little brothers.
"Definitely going out with them, keeping an eye on them, holding their hands, going trick or treating with them," Guzman said.
The app also has a panic button. If your kids have it on their phone, they can press the button and the app will send you an alert.
The Life360 App is free.
