“I was with an individual I was not comfortable around. I was comfortable at first and then I realized, ‘oh no. I’ve got to get out of this, I don’t feel comfortable,’” said 25-year-old Renee Shumay.
She said she hit the little button on her bracelet and, in just a few seconds, a message went to her family and a few of her closes friends. Shumay said she believes her fashionable silver bracelet may have saved her life.
“My dad called me, and all my friends texted if I was okay, and I was able to talk to them in a moment where I was panicked and didn’t have a lot of control,” she said.
Shumay was wearing a panic button bracelet designed by a company called Flare. Flare CEO Sara de-Zarraga said she created the product based on her own experience.
“I’m a survivor of sexual assault like far too many women are. But I’ve also experienced countless other unsafe moments,” de-Zarraga said.
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And Flare isn’t the only company offering safety couture. InvisaWear makes necklaces, bracelets, wristbands and scrunchies with discrete safety features.
“We wanted an attacker to have no idea that you’re calling for help,” Rajia Abdelaziz, the CEO and Co-Founder of InvisaWear, said.
Abdelaziz said if you press the button twice, it’ll text five people of your choice to let them know you need help. It’ll share your location and it can also contact 911.
Boston 25′s sister station WJAX put both devices to the test with the help of the Clay County Florida Sheriff’s Office.
First, they tested a bracelet with Flare. Pressing the button first sent a call to a phone first, then a text message, then a call from a third party. Finally, the company reached out to law enforcement. From start to finish it took 20 minutes before deputies were alerted.
Next, they tried InvisaWear. It’s designed to connect directly with the security company ADT, which then called the 911 dispatch center. In this case, it took four minutes. The sheriff’s Lt. who watched the test said it’s important to remember that minutes count in emergencies.