FAQ
Community Beacon
How is Community Beacon Secured?
The following mechanisms are in place to keep all users as secure as possible:
- Volunteers have to sign up with a valid UK telephone number (most of which have a UK address associated to them). This is safer than email, as email, more often than not, is totally anonymous. The number is checked via SMS so it is not possible to make one up as use the apps.
- Volunteers must provide their name and a selfie. This selfie is taken, live, at the point of sign up. The user cannot select from their camera roll and therefore pick a picture of someone else. So we get a photo that is up to date and clear. All Volunteer accounts are checked by the admin team to ensure the selfie is clear and meets our guidelines.
- No specific location details are shared in the app, just a general location
- No ‘free type’ is allowed in the app, meaning users can not type anything to each other - it is all pre-defined content (such as ‘Chat on the phone’)
- Volunteers can only see requests from their local area
- Reporting mechanisms are clearly in the app, so users can report and block other users. The admin team checks users that have been reported and will block them from the app if required.
- For very vulnerable users, or users that are not at all tech savvy, a third party (family member or friend) can be nominated to post help requests on the vulnerable person’s behalf. Using the app in this way means that the third party interacts with the volunteer and can weed out any suspicious behaviour (and of course, report that user in the app if required)
Can Community Beacon be used by people who do not understand technology?
Community Beacon has been designed to be as easy to use, especially for the Beneficiary users. If it is impractical for a Beneficiary user to use the app, either because they are not technically competent or they don't own an iOS or Android device, then Community Beacon can be used by a third party (family member or friend) on the Beneficiary's behalf. Using the app in this way means the Beneficiary gets the benefit of Community Beacon without being able to use it themselves.
On which devices will Community Beacon run?
Community Beacon has been developed to run on Apple (iOS) and Android devices.
I work with a group of volunteers, can I add them to Community Beacon?
Yes, if you work with a group of volunteers then we can upload them to the app for you. We can even differentiate your volunteers from other volunteer users in the app. Please get in touch communitybeacon@compsoft.com
