Putting a Panic Button In Smartphone Users' Hands

[wraggster]

"If you own an Android (http://forums.androidcentral.com/lg-optimus-g-pro/286677-too-easy-accidentally-call-911-lock-screen.html#post3172006) phone, you may have inadvertently butt-dialed 911 (http://news.cnet.com/8301-17852_3-57585359-71/alleged-robbers-butt-dial-911/) from time-to-time. So, wonders Kix Panganiban, why don't our phones come with a universal 'Panic Button' (https://medium.com/on-coding/64fb342b3828), that would make it just as easy to intentionally dial the police when it's truly needed? Panganiban envisions "a smartphone app that when triggered, would discreetly send out a distress message to contacts of your choice, and perhaps do some other functions that can get you out of bad (and maybe even life-threatening) situations." While a quick search reveals that some have taken a crack at apps (http://www.redpanicbutton.com/index.html)that put a Panic Button in smartphone users' hands (http://chronicle.com/blogs/wiredcampus/emergency-app-puts-a-panic-button-in-smartphone-users-hands/48611), are there good reasons why such a feature isn't just standard on mobile devices? And, with GPS and always-watching (http://www.extremetech.com/extreme/131914-google-glass-now-utopia-or-dystopia) and always-listening (http://www.theverge.com/2013/7/14/4522054/moto-x-always-listening-voice-commands-new-notifications) tech only becoming cheaper and more ubiquitous, how far out in the future is it before your person can be continuously remotely monitored like your residence (http://www.adt.com/resources/remote-home-monitoring-from-your-smartphone/), even while mobile, and what might that look like?"

http://mobile.slashdot.org/story/13/12/21/1529202/putting-a-panic-button-in-smartphone-users-hands