Smartphone App Tackles Bullying

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MICHELLE PAULINO
Staff Writer

Released at the end of October, OptimizeApps launched the “Bully Button,” a smartphone application that was crafted to prevent bullying within schools.
According to a 2007 survey conducted by the National Center for Education Statistics, nearly 33% of students ranging from ages 12 to 18 experienced some form of bullying in school.
On Global Teen Talk, the results of surveys in 2009 showed that over 100,000 children carried guns to school as a result from being bullied.
This app can be dowloaded for free at Apple’s iTunes store online. It begins recording a 30-second audio byte as soon as it is opened; that recording is then attached to an email with the default message “Hi…Please help me.” The address field is left to the bullying victim who can send the recording to an adult for assistance.
“I think it’s a very creative way to market apps because bullying is a very sensitive subject [especially since so many people are bullied],” junior Chelsea Lim said.
In addition, the app also includes other features, such as access to suicide hotlines and a speed dial system, that will contact friends, family and school administrators who are saved in the contact list.
“It’s great; it could change a person’s life,” junior Stephanie Osorio said.