WardUs, an app designed by UB students to improve public safety

Available on the Google Play Store and the App Store, WardUs is a citizen protection tool that also contributes to creating safer university environments. For this reason, the SocUB app, a platform that provides the UB community with access to the University’s main services and functions, now includes WardUs through the Equality feature, already available in the app. The University of Barcelona is the first university to adopt this security service. 

By pressing a button for three seconds, the app allows the user to send an immediate alert to previously predefined trusted contacts, other app users nearby, and police forces that collaborate with WardUs, sharing your location in real time. WardUs allows users to add a widget to your mobile home screen to activate an alert instantly without opening the app. 

The app also records audio and video of the incident at the same time the alert is activated. This material can then be used as objective evidence in possible police and judicial proceedings. Other users nearby can also make a recording from their perspective, creating a citizen network of mobile cameras. 

To ensure a safe environment, WardUs implements measures such as user verification via SMS and a facial scanning system. In addition, to close the alert, the user must enter a personal code, preventing the attacker from deactivating it. 

A comprehensive and open security ecosystem for police forces 

One of WardUs’ great features is that it offers management tools for local councils and police forces, allowing them to receive real-time alerts, view incidents on a map and coordinate patrols efficiently. The Manresa City Council and its local police force were the first authorities to sign up to the app.