We all know that social media is one of the greatest gifts we have for staying in touch, sharing photos and videos and certainly keeping friends and family in the loop, but on more than one occasion, Facebook (especially) has been helpful during disasters. In the last year, Facebook activated it’s Safety Check feature during the Brussels and Paris attacks – helping families, friends and loved ones to check in and let folks know they’re OK. This past weekend, activating the Safety Check feature following the bombing in Pakistan, despite the best intentions, the feature inadvertently sent notifications to many users nowhere near the disaster.
According to Mashable, A Facebook spokesperson was able to elaborate on the incident in an email to Mashable, saying, “We activated Safety Check today in Lahore, Pakistan, after a bombing that took place there. Unfortunately, many people not affected by the crisis received a notification asking if they were okay. We worked to resolve the issue and we apologize to anyone who mistakenly received the notification.”
Here’s what some users were seeing:
Not in Pakistan, thanks for looking out though @facebook
If you’re there, stay safe! pic.twitter.com/RlrFGsf3Df— Travis Day (@casuallytravis) March 27, 2016
“In recent months, we’ve activated Safety Check several times, during the floods in Chennai (India), after earthquakes in northeast India and southern Taiwan, and after terrorist attacks in Paris (France), Yola (Nigeria), and Ankara (Turkey)… In 2015, more than 950 million people received a notification that a friend or loved one was safe in a crisis,” (via Mashable).
Despite the fact that many users outside of Pakistan were receiving messages from Facebook’s Safety Check system, it’s incredible that it’s worked so well, so many times. And, how amazing that technology has come so far that we have the ability to let our loved ones know we’re safe with the push of a button. So, if you inadvertently received a safety check message, hug your loved ones a little tighter and think good thoughts for those who have been affected by disaster. Thanks Facebook for doing your best to keep us all in touch.
