We live in a world where we are forced to pay for services that are unreliable, corrupt and brutal. We are taught from a young age that you pick up the phone and dial 911 at the first sign of trouble.

But sadly, we increasingly see the responders to our pleas for help showing up and making matters worse.

I’ve been there a number of times myself. I see something bad that is too much for me to handle. I pull out my phone to dial 911 and then stop, thinking police will just make matters worse, something we all should think about before he make that call.

I could not live with myself if I made the call for help that ended in tragedy for a loved one.

So what are we to do?

One solution is an app called CELL 411 developed by an activist developer. In this simple but powerful app, you are able to alert all of your friends in your area of a problem, giving them instant access to your location and status (ie. broken down, fight in progress, copwatching ect). You can also watch what is happening live at your friend’s location with the live streaming feature.

Why call 911 for a problem and wait 12 to 20 minutes for a response when you can simply alert all your neighbors and get instant assistance? The app even saves the videos you stream, allowing you or any of your friends to access to download it.

So the big question is how much is it? Well the app started out at the insanely reasonable price of 99 cents, but after a few months, its creators decided it was important the app gets used by as many people as possible, so they made it free.

There are endless ways this can help you and your loved ones. No longer do you need to dial the phone dreading who will show up.

Now you can control whom you alert. You can even set the app to “patrol mode,” meaning any public alert sent out in your area will get pushed to your phone.

I try here not to sound too much like a salesman but I really do use this app all of the time. Its a way to watch your friends’ backs even if you are not there physically.

Just yesterday I even was able to find my wife’s exact location when she broke down on the highway. Knowing that she has Cell411 on her phone makes me feel so much safer.

Below are a list of resources as well as download links for Google Play and Apple as well as a YouTube video explaining more.

Cell411 webpage: http://getcell411.com

By Severin Johnson