When something happens, be it an attack or a natural disaster, you will often see users in the local area marking themselves as safe on Facebook.
This featured is designed to let loved ones know that you are safe, should you be within the immediate vicinity or location surrounding something that has occurred – preventing them from worrying or even listing you as missing in the wake of a crisis.
Here’s how to quickly mark yourself as safe, preventing the need to message friends and family directly.
3 Steps to Mark Yourself as Safe on Facebook
- Click on the magnifying glass in the top corner of your Facebook app
- Type ‘Crisis Response’ into the search bar and hit ‘Search’
- A shortcut will appear at the top of the search results, labelled ‘Crisis Response’ along with a blue icon. Tap on this to open the Crisis Response page
The Crisis Response page will list a series of recent crises and events that are happening around the world. If there is one that is local or relevant to you, you need to click on it and then select the button labelled ‘Let Friends Know That You’re Safe’.
You can also follow this same process to find out if someone you know is safe, should you be worried about their proximity to a disaster or crisis. You can do this by selecting the specific event or issue, and then clicking the button that’s labelled ‘Check on Friends’.
Any friends who are known to be in the area will appear, using their Facebook location data as a guideline.
What Happens When You Mark Yourself as Safe?
Once you have marked yourself as safe in light of a specific event or occurrence, this information will appear on the feed of your friends just like any other update would.
We hope this helps. Features like this really spotlight the value of Facebook when it comes to staying connected with friends and using the platform to offer help and support in light of a crisis. Knowing that this feature is there and available when it’s needed is a big asset to being active on Facebook.
