Amber Alert for urgent missing persons can be used locally via popular apps

Parts of the Amber Alert system can now also be used specifically for missing persons that do not fall into the highest category. For example, the police can use popular apps to reach citizens who may be in the vicinity of the missing child.

The Amber Alert system is being used to turn the entire country ‘into one big search poster’ when a child goes missing. Parts of this system can now also be used specifically for ‘urgent missing children’. In contrast to an Amber Alert, there is no immediate danger to life. In that case, notifications are shown based on geographical location. This could include notifications at petrol stations, along the road or on the railway. In addition, notifications can be shown via apps such as the navigation app Waze and the news app from Nu.nl.

Geofencing is used to send targeted reports, founder Frank Hoen reports. Virtual boundaries are drawn by geographical areas. Only users who are in a certain area will receive such a message.

Displaying the alerts by organizations is done on a voluntary basis. You can search for yourself by using the Amber Alert apps. The site also describes how systems can be linked to the RSS feed. Over the past seven years, the entire system has been deployed about three to four times a year.