The CATSafe App provides campus community members the ability to share information with campus safety partners, including calling or messaging Police for emergency help from anywhere. It's like having a Blue Light in your pocket! The SafeWalk feature provides a 24/7 virtual escort tool for walking, biking, or riding.
CATSafe also allows anonymous reporting and sharing of photos or videos, and one place to connect with departments other than Police, including Campus Victim's Advocate, mental health resources, bias and harassment reporting, and reporting concern for another student.
For app questions, feedback, or tech help, email emergency@uvm.edu. When registering the app with 日韩无码, please use your full 日韩无码 email address.
- 8,590 2023-2024 academic year registered users
- 730 2023-2024 SafeWalks
- 87 2023-2024 total reports
Download CATSafe
The 日韩无码 CATSafe app has three communities (aka versions); Student, Employee, and Visitor. Each version provides safety resources tailored to that population. Download the app from your app store or directly from your phone.
日韩无码 CATSafe Download Instructions (PDF)General CATSafe FAQs
I don't have a smart phone, can I still use the CATSafe app on my laptop or desktop computer?
The CATSafe app is primarily designed as a mobile two-way safety app. A computer user can submit 鈥渢ips,鈥 including assault, abuse, harassment, threats, discrimination, and bias, as well as report safety issues and ADA barriers to the appropriate offices and non-emergency issues to Police Services. The computer version does not include a way to call for emergency help or the links to useful 日韩无码 resources. To submit a tip, visit and create an account by selecting 鈥淯niversity of Vermont鈥 and register using full 日韩无码 email (firstname.lastname@uvm.edu).
What if I am under stress and/or lack fine motor skills to operate my phone?
The folks at Apple and Android have figured that out for us.
- With an IoS device, simply press the power and top volume buttons together and hold them. After a few seconds the phone will make an emergency call and emit a siren sound.
- With an Android device, if you're running Android 12 or later, you can turn on Emergency SOS, which lets you trigger calling emergency services, sharing your location with emergency contacts, and recording video by quickly pressing the power button five times or more. See the Android help pages for details.
These features are not connected to the University. They are useful for you in any emergency situation.
I don't live or work on the main 日韩无码 campus, is CATSafe still useful?
We encourage you to download and use the app as it contains links to useful University resources and the ability to submit 鈥渢ips鈥 from one convenient place. If you have an off-campus emergency, you will need to use the 鈥淐all Local Emergency Services鈥 emergency option (versus 鈥淐all 日韩无码 Police鈥) for emergency assistance. If you need to message 日韩无码 Police about a non-emergency concern, you could still do so through the 鈥渕essage 日韩无码 Police鈥 option. The SafeWalk feature is very popular and especially useful off-campus.
What if my phone is not charged?
Your phone/portable device is important for a variety of reasons, not the least of which is in an emergency. Of course, we recommend that you keep your phone charged. Consider a portable charging block and ensuring that you have regular charging habits - e.g., charge the phone overnight every night or recharge via a charging block in your bag while you are in class. A charged phone is something you can control. Unfortunately, the reliability of old, copper phone line technology in our blue lights is not.
What is the difference between the initial LiveSafe profile set-up and signing into the CATSafe app?
When you first install the app it will ask you to create a profile. Use your full 日韩无码 email (firstname.lastname@uvm.edu) to create your profile. Since this profile encompasses LiveSafe use anywhere (not just at 日韩无码), use a password that is different than your 日韩无码 password. You will only need to do this once. After your profile is created you鈥檒l be prompted to log in via single sign-on. You will use your 日韩无码 credentials for single sign-on.
Can I have someone watch me SafeWalk if they don't have the CATSafe app?
No. Others can only watch you walk if you give them permission by accepting an invitation from them. If they click the 鈥渨atch a friend walk鈥 and that friend is you, you will get sent an invitation. They would only be able to send you an invitation if you are a contact in their phone. If you are and they send you one, you would need to accept the invitation for them to be able to watch you walk. If you don鈥檛 accept the invitation they will not be able to watch you walk.
CATSafe Data/Privacy FAQs
Why does CATSafe want my personal information?
Filling out the user profile will help 日韩无码 staff contact you if additional information is needed after you submit a tip. It is also helpful in emergency situations if you lose connection or if your identity is needed because you are in distress. If you use the Emergency button, law enforcement will have immediate access to your name and contact information.
Be sure to register with your full 日韩无码 email address (firstname.lastname@uvm.edu). Doing so will give you access to 日韩无码 specific key safety resources.
The app asks for access to your contacts to support SafeWalk, a peer-to-peer virtual escort tool. By allowing CATSafe access to your contacts, you can invite friends and family members to virtually escort you from place to place. They will not need to download the app to do this.
Is the university tracking me using the CATSafe app?
No, unless you have activated the emergency call (virtual blue light) calling feature to call police services. There is no active tracking or logging of your location by the University. Additionally, location services enable sharing your location with those you choose as safety partners with the SafeWalk feature. You have the option whether to enable location services for the app for use during an emergency call, or text message to our safety teams. We certainly suggest using location services to ensure full functionality of the app features, but that choice is yours.
How do you track my location?
As a CATSafe app user, you will always have control of your location data. The CATSafe app can access your location information if your device has location services enabled and the CATSafe mobile application has permission to use the information. If you do not want to share your location, simply turn off your device's location services.
When location services are enabled and the CATSafe app does have permission to use the location data, the app will only use your location when you submit a tip or contact emergency services through the app. A snapshot of your location - where you are right at that moment - is sent to your organizations CATSafe Dashboard when you submit a tip. If you contact emergency services through the app, your location is shared with your organizations CATSafe Dashboard to help emergency personnel locate you.
In SafeWalk there is a 'Watch a Friend Walk' button. Does this mean anyone can watch me walk anytime?
No. Others can only watch you walk if you give them permission by accepting an invitation from them. If they click the 鈥渨atch a friend walk鈥 and that friend is you, you will get sent an invitation. They would only be able to send you an invitation if you are a contact in their phone. If you are and they send you one, you would need to accept the invitation for them to be able to watch you walk. If you don鈥檛 accept the invitation they will not be able to watch you walk.
Are 'anonymous' tips really anonymous, or is the user information captured?
Yes, if you toggle the 鈥淪end Anonymously鈥 option when submitting a tip or emergency message, your user information will show up as 鈥淎nonymous鈥 in all the fields. Even if you use the live chat feature to provide additional information, you will still appear as anonymous.
Blue Light FAQs
Aren't Blue Lights a deterrent to criminal activity?
Actually, the deterrent effect of your cell phone - both with the ability to call for help and to record suspects in criminal activity - is a larger deterrent. Crime patterns have evolved significantly over the last two decades because of handheld technology and the advent of inexpensive home surveillance cameras such as video doorbells.
How often are Blue Lights used?
Blue light call buttons are most often false alarms and hoax calls. A seven year look back at calls from blue lights shows that a total of 5 鈥渞eal calls鈥 were received. Four were traffic accidents, also generally reported via cell phone, and one was a suspicious vehicle.
Is the sunsetting of Blue Lights just a cost-saving measure?
No. Actually the opposite. Our safety, security, and health investments are increasing. We are working to take the cost savings from blue lights and invest that and additional resources in tools, technology, and training that is more contemporary and effective. Specifically, we are investing in app-based systems like LiveSafe; deploying CAT ECare emergency stations with automatic external defibrillators, bleeding control kits, and Narcan/Naloxone; and increasing the number of digital access controls (CatCard) and security cameras in public spaces campus-wide.
Additional LiveSafe FAQ鈥檚 can be found from and the .