Zamanat
Zamanat provides the essential safety lifeline with three core features: intelligent location sharing, one-tap status updates, and stress-resistant emergency alerts, bridging the gap between feeling safe and being safe.
Role
UX design, UI design, research, visual design
Design tool
Figma, Illustrator
Platform
iOS
Security concerns have highlighted the necessity for a strong safety solution that cuts across national borders. These concerns range from kidnapping to harassment, diseases, natural disasters, and more. The unique safety app Zamanat was created with the sole intention of improving people's lives and communities all throughout the world.
Goal
To develop an application that could provide peace of mind to users and their loved ones without adding complexity to their daily lives or compromising their privacy.
2. Designing features that balance comprehensive safety needs with simplicity and ease of use
3. Ensuring the application functions reliably in emergency situations when users are under stress
4. Building trust through transparent location sharing controls while maintaining privacy
4. Building trust through transparent location sharing controls while maintaining privacy
Design Approach
As the sole designer on this project, I took a comprehensive approach to creating an intuitive and engaging mobile experience.
Timeline Feed
The Timeline Feed provides a chronological view of status updates from contacts, allowing users to quickly see important notifications like traffic delays or security incidents. Users can interact with updates and access their contact circle through profile icons at the top.
Panic Alert Options
When a situation requires immediate attention, users can categorize the emergency through intuitive icons, selecting specific incident types like "Security," "Incident," or "Traffic." This ensures contacts receive precise information about the nature of the emergency.
Trackers Management
The My Trip screen enables users to create time-limited journeys with selected contacts receiving location updates. Below, the My Live Trackers section displays active location-sharing permissions, giving users complete control over who can access their whereabouts.
Location Tracking View
This map interface shows the real-time location of contacts who have granted tracking permission. Users can see how recently the location was updated and access additional options through the menu, providing crucial visibility when safety monitoring is needed.
Users interview
I conducted in-depth interviews with 32 participants across different age groups, occupations, and security contexts. The interview pool included students, working professionals, parents, and elderly individuals in both urban and rural settings. Special attention was given to areas with documented security challenges.
The structured interview process included five key questions designed to uncover patterns in safety concerns, existing safety behaviors, and attitudes toward technology-based safety solutions:
Q1: How do you feel about personal safety when being away from home?
Q2: Have you ever felt unsafe, and what was your experience?
Q3: How do you stay connected with friends and family when traveling?
Q4: In case of an emergency, how do you currently seek help or alert someone?
Q5: If there was a way to track your journey and share your location with loved ones, would you use it?
Key finding
87% of respondents expressed moderate to severe anxiety about personal safety when away from familiar environments, with particular concern during transition periods (commuting, traveling between locations).
All participants recounted at least one significant safety incident, with 62% describing situations where communication failure exacerbated the danger.
Current emergency response strategies are predominantly improvised, with 78% of respondents lacking a reliable system that works under duress.
94% of respondents rely on active, manual communication methods (calls, texts) that create interruptions and depend on user initiative, with no automated fallback.
91% expressed interest in location-sharing functionality, with strong emphasis on user control, privacy, and simplicity as prerequisites for adoption.
Security Threat Analysis
To ground our design in reality, we conducted extensive research on security threats in high-risk regions, with Afghanistan serving as a secondary source for research:
Insurgent-Related Violence: Data from the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) revealed over 8,820 security incidents in 2020 alone, including armed clashes and IED attacks.
Kidnappings: Both locals and foreigners faced significant kidnapping risks, with hundreds of incidents reported annually, motivated by financial gain or political agendas.
Natural Disasters: Afghanistan's location in a seismically active region makes it vulnerable to earthquakes, floods, and droughts. In 2015, a powerful earthquake caused widespread damage across northern Afghanistan and Pakistan, while 2020 saw significant flooding that displaced thousands.
User Personas
Based on our extensive research and interviews, we developed four detailed personas representing our core user segments. These personas guided every aspect of our design process, from feature prioritization to interface decisions.
Post an event
The thoughtful categorization system ensures that even in stressful circumstances, users can easily classify their situation and share exactly what kind of help they might need.
Create a post
The Timeline interface features a prominent "+" button in the top-right corner, providing quick access to create new posts. This intuitive entry point allows users to rapidly share safety updates or incidents with their trusted contacts.
New Post Creation
The post creation screen offers a clean interface with options to share your location, add photos, and compose your message. The minimalist design prioritizes speed and simplicity, critical factors when reporting time-sensitive situations.
Incident Categorization
Users categorize their situation by selecting from clear, icon-based options (Minor Incident, Security, Natural Disaster, Traffic, Health, Party). Once a primary category is selected, relevant subcategories appear below, allowing for precise situation reporting.
Complete Post Preview
Before publishing, users can review their complete post, including the message, attached image, selected category, and subcategory tags. This confirmation step ensures accurate information is shared with contacts, preventing unnecessary alarm or confusion.
Building Your Safety Circle
Safety Circle feature enables users to select up to five close contacts who receive immediate notifications during emergencies.
Adding Trusted Contacts
The "Add" button, the gateway to creating your personal safety network of up to five trusted contacts who will receive your emergency alerts.
Contact Search Initiation
Upon tapping "Add," a search field appears, maintaining context within the Timeline view while focusing on the critical task of expanding your safety circle.
Email-Based Contact Search
Users enter a contact's email address, providing a secure and precise method of identifying the exact person they wish to trust with their safety information.
Completed Contact Addition
Once selected, the contact instantly appears in the trusted circle at the top of the interface, creating an easily accessible network of people who can respond during emergencies.
Alert Classification
intuitive alert system organizes emergencies into five primary categories (Security, Incident, Natural, Traffic, Health), each with specific subcategories that enable users to communicate the exact nature of their situation with a single tap.
Security Alerts
Incident Alerts
Natural Disaster Alerts
Traffic Alerts
Health Alerts
Alert Card design
Each card includes user identification (profile image and name), precise location data, incident classification, timestamp, personalized message, optional visual documentation, and engagement metrics
My Trip - a trip-specific safety tracking
Zamanat's My Trip feature offers temporary location sharing for specific journeys, providing a perfect balance between privacy and safety.
Trip Dashboard
The My Trip provides a central hub for managing journey-specific location sharing. Users can see which contacts currently have access to track this particular trip.
Adding a new Trip Tracker
Users can search for contacts by name. The modal interface focuses attention on this critical selection process while providing clear confirmation options.
Confirmed Trackers
After adding contacts, the dashboard updates to show all selected trip trackers. This screen confirms the user's privacy settings, clearly displaying exactly who will receive location data during the journey.
Start a trip
By tapping the three dots, you can start a trip and your trusted Trackers and track your location.
My Live Tracks
Zamanat's Live Tracking creates always-on location sharing with trusted contacts, providing permanent safety connections rather than temporary trip monitoring. Users can quickly build and manage their safety network while maintaining control over who has persistent access to their whereabouts.
My Live Tracks Dashboard
The My Live Tracks section displays current continuous tracking relationships and allows users to add new safety monitors through the prominent "+" button, creating an always-on safety network for ongoing protection.
Adding a new Live Tracker
The process of adding a Live Tracker, allowing users to search for specific contacts and clearly explaining that this person will have persistent location access, distinguishing it from temporary trip monitoring.
Location Monitoring View
Once tracking is established, contacts can view the user's precise location on a map interface, with timestamps showing recency of updates and a streamlined view that focuses attention on the user's position.
Multiple Contact Management
Users can configure multiple trusted contacts, while changing the trackers between each other seamlessly.
