For undocumented immigrants, signaling for help during a raid or roundup now only takes the push of a virtual "panic button."

A new app called Notifica, designed for undocumented immigrants feeling threatened in Trump's America, sends out secure messages to a designated support network when users are caught up in raids or detained during travel.

In the event of an emergency, users can set up the app to contact friends, family, immigration lawyers or even advocacy groups.

"Why isn't there a panic button for when ICE comes to your door?"

Through Notifica, which was created by digital agency Huge, users select contacts they would want to notify during a raid or crisis, and create preloaded messages for each recipient. Users can choose from sample messages in both English or Spanish, or create their own, using tips on what kind of information they should include.

Once a user has loaded the messages into the app, they're secured with a PIN number, so no one else can read them. If a user finds themselves being targeted for their immigration status, they can deploy all the messages with a single tap of a virtual button. Once the messages are sent, all traces vanish immediately — and all the app data is erased.

Image: Notifica/Huge

The app concept started off as a simple question. Adrian Reyna, director of membership at immigrant youth-led organization United We Dream, was frustrated with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the state of deportations in the country. So, at a conference late last year, he asked Huge software engineer Natalia Margolis, "Why isn't there a panic button for when ICE comes to your door?"

Based on that question, the first iteration of the app was created at a 24-hour hackathon hosted by Huge on Jan. 14, focusing on solving big social issues. The app debuted this week at SXSW, and will officially launch on iPhone and Android in the coming weeks.

"In the time we spent developing the app, it became clear that this was less about panic and more about being prepared," Margolis said. "It's about having certainty that you can reach your support network — that through technology, the people who have your back can feel closer to you at all times."

Image: Notifica/Huge

With an estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants living in the U.S., the audience for an app like Notifica is massive, and so is the need. When the first mass raids targeting undocumented populations in the Trump era began in February, the development of Notifica was already underway. In one week alone, 680 undocumented immigrants in California, Texas, Virginia, North Carolina, Georgia, New York and Kansas were targeted by these raids by immigration authorities.

"Pressing a button won’t end the deportation, but it will give many families like mine an added layer of security."

"I am undocumented, and so are my parents," Reyna said. "They fear what would happen to me if I get detained. ICE is out of control. When they detain you, things move very fast. They harass you and intimidate you. With that uncertainty, it could be difficult to notify the people you trust or what to do."

Huge partnered with Reyna and United We Dream to connect with immigrant communities in Texas, Florida and New Mexico, advising undocumented communities on how to make the app fit their needs.

Reyna said an app like Notifica allows his community to create emergency plans that are easy to execute — even when facing the scariest of circumstances.

"Notifica is just another way we are taking a proactive step to build community protection if we find ourselves in deportation proceedings," Reyna said.

"Pressing a button won’t end the deportation, but it will give many families like mine an added layer of security by communicating to them that we are moving into whatever emergency plan we have created."