According to the Los Angeles Times, Facebook has teamed up to partner with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children to bring Amber Alerts to its million-person-plus social network. The announcement was made yesterday on the 15th anniversary of the kidnapping of Amber Hagerman, of whom the alert system is named after.
Each individual state has its own alert page – including the US Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C. Facebook now have the option of signing up to receive alerts for their geographic location.
How powerful has this system been? According to reports yesterday out of Roanoke, VA, a 12-year old girl was returned to her family after an alert was read on Facebook. That’s pretty incredible stuff.
This isn’t the first time a social network has dabbled in something like this. MySpace had a similar program a few years ago, but with the explosion of Facebook, the potential for this program is far greater. Facebook has thrown its full weight behind the project, donating $500 million in advertising impressions to promote the program.
