How big tech companies helped people during the Paris attacks
Technology showed its compassionate face during the Nov. 13 atrocity
Tech companies across the globe came forward to help people in France following the heinous terrorist attacks in Paris on Nov.13, where Isis-affiliated murderers claimed at least 129 lives. During such human disasters, technology becomes the most useful and friendly tool to help people by providing accurate information.
Free international calls to Paris by telecom giants, Skype and Google
Telecom companies, including T-Mobile, AT&T, Verizon and Sprint, started offering free international calling and text messaging to France. AT&T waived call charges made from the U.S. to the France from Nov. 13 to Nov. 17. Sprint and T-Mobile provided the free calling service till Nov. 15 and Nov. 16, respectively.
To support their huge customer base, Verizon announced free long distance international calls and text messages for wireless customers and free calls for home telephone users till Nov. 15.
Skype also tried to reach out to attack victims and announced free calls to help people get in touch with family and friends in France. Search giant Google also made international calls free via Google Hangouts.
Safety Check by Facebook
Facebook activated its Safety Check feature after the horrifying terror attacks in Paris, enabling users to send notifications to all the numbers in contact lists saying they’re safe and sound. Mark Zuckerberg clarified that this tool was specifically designed to be turned on during natural hazards.
But following the attacks in France, Facebook updated the policy and immediately activated the Safety Check. The tool automatically detects the location of the user and prompts him to specify if he’s safe. Within 24 hours, more than 4 million people had marked themselves as safe via Facebook Safety Check.
Uber disables Surge pricing
Following the attacks, Uber disabled their surge price function to help people in France commute at an affordable rate. “Drivers kept working throughout the night, taking many a Parisians safely home for free”, said Thomas Meister, an Uber spokesperson, as reported by Quartz.
Twitter uses #PorteOuverte (Open Door)
On Twitter, people used the hashtag #PorteOuverte to inform other people where accommodations were available in Paris that terrible evening. The hashtag went viral on the social networking website, which helped many people to find a safe place to stay.
Airbnb helps people to find a place to stay
Immediately after the terror attacks in Paris, Airbnb updated its online Community Centre and Disaster Response pages to reach out to hundreds of people in need of a place to stay. After the serial attacks, more than 300 hosts in Paris offered free accommodation to stranded guests for free.
The Disaster Response page posted lists of free housing and waived service charges for hosts, enabling them to lower the price for people in need, reported TIME. Airbnb also decided to cover the costs for all travel delays.
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