Sex Offender Tracker App

Platform: Android

RATING:
5 out of 5

PRICE:
FREE

TASTY:
See U.S. sex offenders near you on a virtual map.

BUMMER:
Is set to turn into a for-pay service in the coming months, check http://www.life360.com for details.

COOL:
Sex offender data displays the name, address, list of charges, and color photograph to better inform you of those living near you.

Read all of my past Android app reviews at Appolicious and Yahoo! Tech -- click here.

REVIEW:
The folks at Life360 offer a suite of mobile apps to track your family while on the go, and recently added a free, standalone Sex Offender Tracker to their roster.

The app is clean, clear, and does exactly what its name implies. So long as you’re in the United States, firing up the app will force you to create an account with Life360. Once logged in, a map of your local area appears.

Pinching and zooming will move the view closer and further away. I was surprised to find an orange icon hovering over a home one neighborhood away from my present location. Clicking on it brought up the name, physical description, list of charges (second degree rape), and a mug shot of the offender.
Moving the map around, I found more than a dozen other offenders open for viewing, along with locations of police and fire stations in my area.

As you and your phone travel, you can set a refresh timer to automatically see offenders near you. Keeping this setting to the 15 minute default will save battery life.

Currently a free app, there’s no doubt parents and concerned citizens everywhere should download and install this program to be more aware of those around them.