Are You Safe? Google 'Trusted Contacts' Arrives on iOS

Google's Trusted Contacts app, which lets you easily tell loved ones you're safe, debuted on Android in December and is now available on iOS.

Google is also rolling out some updates for Android users that should "make it even easier to feel safe and give your loved ones peace of mind," Google Staff Software Engineer Minh T. Nguyen wrote in a blog post.

Trusted Contacts lets you share your location with loved ones, even if your phone is offline or you can't get to it. Once you install the app, you can label your closest friends and family members as trusted contacts who can request your location.

"If everything's fine, you can deny the request," according to the app's description. "If you're unable to respond, your last known location is shared automatically" — even if your phone is offline or dead.

With the latest version of Trusted Contacts for Android, you can choose how long before the app automatically shares your location with a trusted contact who asks for it. "Previously set to five minutes by default, you can now choose to share immediately or wait up to an hour," Nguyen wrote.

Android users can also now add trusted contacts by phone number as well as by email address.

"When you type in a phone number, an SMS is sent to that person with an invitation to connect," Nguyen explained. "If they accept, then they become a trusted contact and you'll see their name and profile picture in your app from then on."

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Trusted Contacts is also now available nine new languages: Amharic (Ethiopia), Greek (Greece), Persian (Iran), Bahasa (Indonesia), Macedonian (Macedonia), Burmese (Myanmar), Nepali (Nepal), Serbian (Serbia) and Urdu (Pakistan). With those additions, the app now supports 25 languages worldwide.

Trusted Contacts is available for download in the App Store and Google Play. Android users: make sure you're using the latest version of the app (1.5) to get the new features.