If you’re taking your kids with you to Mardi Gras this year download the FBI Child ID app before you leave in the unfortunate event you and your kid are separated.
The app gets you to build a profile of your child, including photo, height, weight, age, and your contact number. FBI New Orleans spokesperson Craig Betbeze says if your child is missing, just press a button.
“It allows you to push that information out to law enforcement, and can put it in the hands of thousands of law enforcement officers because it sends it to the nearest police station,” says Betbeze.
Along with helping get vital identification information to local authorities, Betbeze says it also helps you start piecing together info that could be critical to finding your lost offspring.
“There’s a checklist basically identifying things you should do and consider when, and unfortunately if your child does go missing,” says Betbeze.
It also features a list of safety topics you should discuss with your kid before you head out on the parade route.
Betbeze says the app abides by all child privacy laws.
“Although it is an FBI Child ID app, and it was created specifically created by the FBI, this one here is maintained by the parents, and that information is not stored by the FBI,” says Betbeze.
The app is available through app stores for both Android and iPhone devices and is free.