WikiCrimes Maps Out High-Crime Areas
In the U.S. we're lucky to have a police force that's (generally) trusted and can be relied upon to do the right thing and do what they can to solve crime. In Brazil, unfortunately, there's much less faith in the quality and reliability of the nation's police. Because of this many crimes go un-reported. A new project created by a Brazilian Professor aims to correct that, letting people anonymously and quickly report crimes, pinpointing them on an online map for everyone in the world to see.
The site, WikiCrimes, works as a layer over-top of the popular Google Maps service. If you've been a victim, you can zoom in and pinpoint the location of the offense, then add details of what happened, including a date, type, description, and whether it was reported to the police. Others can then browse the site and filter the crimes based on location and a range of dates, perhaps determining whether their chosen vacation spot is really the best place to be.
The initial focus of the site is crime in Brazil, but there's nothing preventing you from posting crimes in any country around the world. In fact, we found a few crimes posted in the U.K., but as of yet nothing reported from the U.S. Somehow we don't think that's because of a lack of crime, so, get in there and report what's happened to you. Even if you do trust the police there's no reason not to share what happened to you with everyone else. It might just prevent another victim. [Source: BBC News]
