PressRoom
For immediate release
Web-Based Photo Company Puts a Positive Spin on the Internet and Child Safety
ATLANTA, Georgia - May 24, 2006 - Atlanta-based SimplePhoto.com® has combined the efforts of school photographers with internet technology to produce the unique child safety program, Click-and-Safe®. This web-based program provides parents and law enforcement officials with instant access to an online, password-protected school photo in the case of an abducted, lost, or runaway child.
SimplePhoto.com, founded in 1999 by Atlanta photographer/web developer Eric J. Ellis, provides professional photographers with a forum for storing large quantities of images online. The online system allows customers to view, select, and purchase prints easily. Ellis was inspired to create Click-and-Safe when he realized there was an opportunity to use his company's internet savvy in a new way.
"After seeing so many stories of child disappearances in the news, and knowing that SimplePhoto already stores thousands of current school photos online for purchasing, it made sense to make the photos readily available, free of charge, to parents in cases of child endangerment," said Ellis.
In an emergency, when time is critical, Click-and-Safe allows parents to instantly access their child's photo with a complex, random password only the parent has been given. The low-resolution web image can then be quickly downloaded and widely broadcast to local and national media and law enforcement. No personal information about the child is available online, just the photo. Click-and-Safe is free to parents who choose to participate, and is a free option for photographers who use the SimplePhoto.com service.
A recent example of a Click-and-Safe success story took place March 2006 outside of Phoenix Arizona. A missing 13-year old girl was safely located within 48 hours by local police who recognized her after seeing the Click-and-Safe photo posted on the state Amber Alert System.
"When the unthinkable happens and a child is either missing or abducted, the first thing police departments need is a current photo to distribute to their officers and to the various media outlets to assist in finding the child," according to Officer Brandon Banks of the Tempe, Arizona Police Department. "As a police officer with the City of Tempe Police Department for nearly six years, I would like to express how important it is for parents to have current pictures of each of their children. It is also important for these pictures to be available to give to various law enforcement and media groups."
Said CEO Ellis, "We are elated to know our technology works to help parents and law enforcement assist in child safety efforts in this most unique manner."
Click-and-Safe and SimplePhoto.com services are available to photographers and parents across the United States and Canada. Visit
www.clickandsafe.com for more information.
