A cool personal alarm system powered by Bluetooth

by Vlad

These days security is never far from anyone’s mind, it seems wherever we go we are reminded that our personal identity is at risk just as much as our personal belongings and what’s worse is we actually store confidential information on possessions such as mobile phones and laptops.

Now though, we might be able to breathe a little easier thanks to Nio, the brainchild of British Innovators TenBu, based in Edinburgh, Scotland.

Nio is apparently an easy to use device consisting of a Bluetooth tag with a software link that downloads to your phone giving you a personal protective space of up to 25 metres. Cool eh!

Why the name Nio? It is named after the Japanese Guardian Kings and that is what Nio the gadget does, it guards your mobile, laptop or any other device.

So how does it work? The secure zone of 25 metres applies to both your mobile phone and the Bluetooth tag so if you attach the tag to say your laptop then your mobile and your laptop are protected.

If the zone space is breached, like say someone picked up your mobile and attempted to make off with it, the moment they move outside the 25 metre protective zone both the mobile and the tag will emit an audible alarm and a blue light will start flashing on the Bluetooth tag.

Yep, I imagine that might be enough to scare any opportunist thief into dropping it.

If you want even greater protection you can activate a motion sensor which will alert you if anyone so much as tries to move an item that is tagged.

There’s nothing to stop you having multiple tags to attach to all your devices or even your car keys and all of the tags can be controlled simultaneously by the Nio software. Now this is exciting.

I mean how often do we hear about laptops containing confidential data on thousands of people getting lost or stolen? Too often!

So Ben Hounsell, Director of TenBu, is quite right when he says organisations should take security of confidential information on portable storage devices more seriously.

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Knock Knock: What to Do when an Alarm Salesman Knocks on your Front Door

26.07.10

Mc Lean, VA (PRWEB) July 26, 2010

It’s that time of year again, when the seasonal alarm sales programs reach their peak – and this summer is no exception. FrontPoint Security, the leader in wireless security systems , has some timely advice for when you hear that knock on your door.

It was not so long ago that smart sales organizations targeted students, especially in western states like Utah and Idaho, to work as door-to-door sales representatives each summer. After pitching lawn care, vacuums, and encyclopedias, it was a logical step for the “summer sellers” to move into alarm system sales – and the growth of these companies has been huge. The largest door-knocking programs sold almost 200,000 alarm systems in roughly 100 markets across the US last summer. But there can be a dark side to these programs, so buyer beware!

In the first place, these alarm systems are not a great value. Most use a vulnerable home phone line for communication, and the monthly fees are high. The “free” or deeply discounted systems tend to be very basic, and additional alarm equipment that provides true protection can be very expensive. The sales representatives are very highly compensated, and that leads to sales pressure. In addition, the managers are paid on sales, so they are actually incentivized to look the other way when the sales people use questionable sales practices.

Source: PR Web (press release)

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