Nuvel vSOS Emergency Response Application for Smartphones Teamed with AFCA/FBI National Child ID Program

CAMPBELL, Calif., Oct. 25, 2011 /PRNewswire/ --Nuvel, developer of vSOS™, the industry's leading personal emergency response application for smartphones, announced today that it has partnered with the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) to offer vSOS as part of the expanded AFCA/FBI National Child ID Program.  Focused on promoting child and family safety, the expanded program will be fully launched this month.

According to the FBI, a child disappears every 40 seconds in the United States. By helping to protect more than 30 million children in the past 14 years, the National Child ID Program is the largest child identification effort ever conducted.

With the addition of Nuvel's vSOS, the AFCA/FBI National Child ID Program now offers a complete range of family safety and child identification tools: the Child ID kit and Nuvel's vSOS Personal Emergency Response Application for smartphones.  

The Child ID Kit was developed to help parents and guardians provide law enforcement with the information they need to begin looking for a missing child.  vSOS complements this tool with a proactive capability thatenablesanyone  with vSOS on their iPhone or Android smartphone to immediately contact professional emergency responders with a single push of a button.  Since smartphone users are known to carry their phone with them wherever they go, the vSOS app enables emergency support and assistance anytime, anywhere.

Developed to provide assistance and save lives,vSOSisdesigned with advanced, patent-pending technology that provides 24/7/365 response to any emergency—health, accident, assault—through GEOS Alliance, the world leader in emergency monitoring and response services.  To send a distress alert, users simply press the red vSOS emergency alert icon on their iPhone or Android smartphone.  This instantly triggers the vSOS secure, HIPPA-compliant(1) server to send a distress alert to the GEOS International Emergency Response Coordination Center (IERCC).   Mission coordinators at IERCC SAR can then contact the user to verify the emergency.  

If a user does not answer the call from GEOS, certified emergency response professionals will contact the closest emergency dispatch center.  Using GPS technology, vSOS provides the user's precise location to the responders to guide emergency personnel.  The user's name, mobile phone number, address and personalized health information are also included with the alert.  In addition, vSOS will send a text or email message to alert up to five contacts (physician, family, friends) listed in the user profile.

vSOS also includes the GEOS Search and Rescue (SAR) feature at no additional cost.   With this feature, if the standard emergency services need to be supplemented to ensure the user's safety, the GEOS IERCC will authorize additional personnel and equipment (including private aircraft/helicopter charter, private search teams, etc.).  

The Child ID Kits include an inkless fingerprint identification card, an inkless fingerprinting black image applicator, two sterile cotton cheek swabs to collect DNA samples and a physical description card with space for a photograph. These kits are meant to be completed and stored at home by the child's parent or guardian. Families who would like to receive a free Child I.D. Kit for their child can also order the kits by calling 1-888-55-IDKIT or via the internet at www.childidprogram.com.

"Our goal with The National Child Identification Program is to protect all 60 million children in the United States," said Kenny Hansmire, executive director of the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA)/FBI National Child ID Program.  "With vSOS, we can expand our reach to protect not only children but parents, grandparents, and anyone with a smartphone.  Families will have the peace of mind knowing that even when they aren't together, in case of an emergency, help is only a smartphone button away.  It complements our goal to provide important safety tools for families to aid in emergencies when every second counts."

"We feel vSOS will play an important and pro-active role in the AFCA/FBI National Child ID Program," said Jay Elliot, Nuvel's founder and CEO.  "The AFCA has been very successful, not only in building awareness of the importance of Child ID programs but in providing parents and guardians with the tools they need to protect their children.  We share their commitment to child safety and intend to continue to add features and capabilities that will protect every family member."

vSOS Availability, Price

The vSOS subscription fee of $12.99 per month includes both the application and the personal emergency response services.  vSOS Version 2 can be downloaded at the iPhone App Store, the Android Market and the Nuvel website.  vSOS will be available at the AFCA's Child ID site, www.childidprogram.com.   Downloads for other smartphone platforms will be available soon.  Volume licensing is available directly to OEM partners as well as corporate and institutional customers at a discount price based on volume.

About the National Child ID Program

The National Child Identification Program (NCIDP) was created in 1997 by the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) as a community service initiative to help protect America's youth and change the statistics related to missing children. In the fall of 2001, the FBI joined in the partnership with AFCA, making the NCIDP the only program of its kind to gain the backing of the FBI.  For more information about the National Child ID Program please contact: National Child Identification Program; 4700 Bryant Irvin Court, Suite 301; Fort Worth, TX 76107; or call Kenny Hansmire, executive director at 972.934.2211 ext 102.  [email protected]

About Nuvel, Inc.

Headquartered in Campbell, CA, Nuvel delivers innovative software solutions for mobile device users and Internet users.  The business/consumer applications group focuses on developing smartphone/tablet applications that are designed to support, serve and protect individuals and families regardless of the circumstance or location.  Nuvel's net infrastructure group focuses on optimizing and enhancing SMB – enterprise workflow and content management/distribution across the entire organization as well as in the cloud.  For more information, visit www.nuvelinc.com.

(1)  The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) outlines the minimum standards that need to be met to ensure the confidentiality, privacy, and security of information in the Internet environment.

vSOS is a trademark of Nuvel Inc.  All other trademarks and registered trademarks previously cited are the property of their respective owners and are hereby acknowledged.

SOURCE Nuvel