SharkSmart
Free AppAbout SharkSmart
The SharkSmart app provides key information and resources to users to help further reduce the small risk of shark bite in NSW waterways. Features and resources include:
My Risk:
It provides a range of interactive features and resources including a fundamental risk assessment profile that allocates a user into a ‘risky’ or ‘safer’ behaviour rating using factors understood to affect shark bite risk. Risk rating escalates higher or lower subject to the input of the user (e.g. swimming at sunrise or dawn would increase the risk). The risk level can be reduced by adjusting risky behaviour but never eliminated (unless the user doesn’t go in the water)
Maps:
This feature shows where the user is in relation to the general location of beaches in the Shark Meshing (Bather Protection) Program, alternative saltwater swimming locations, alerts about shark-related incidents and news and real-time information from NSW’s VR4G shark listening stations.
Species:
This feature presents images of dangerous and non-dangerous sharks and other marine animals that sting and bite for information and education purposes.
Social Media:
The app offers integrated social media channels hosted by the NSW Department of Primary Industries including Facebook, NSW SharkSmart Twitter and YouTube. There’s also a link to the Department’s SharkSmart webpage so users can be up-to-date with the latest information provided by the department.
Information:
Details about the NSW Shark Meshing (Bather Protection) Program are provided.
Other Safety Programs:
The NSW Government hosts, supports and/or promotes a range of other water safety programs. Links to key programs are provided so user can get the most out of NSW beautiful waterways while staying safer.
My Risk:
It provides a range of interactive features and resources including a fundamental risk assessment profile that allocates a user into a ‘risky’ or ‘safer’ behaviour rating using factors understood to affect shark bite risk. Risk rating escalates higher or lower subject to the input of the user (e.g. swimming at sunrise or dawn would increase the risk). The risk level can be reduced by adjusting risky behaviour but never eliminated (unless the user doesn’t go in the water)
Maps:
This feature shows where the user is in relation to the general location of beaches in the Shark Meshing (Bather Protection) Program, alternative saltwater swimming locations, alerts about shark-related incidents and news and real-time information from NSW’s VR4G shark listening stations.
Species:
This feature presents images of dangerous and non-dangerous sharks and other marine animals that sting and bite for information and education purposes.
Social Media:
The app offers integrated social media channels hosted by the NSW Department of Primary Industries including Facebook, NSW SharkSmart Twitter and YouTube. There’s also a link to the Department’s SharkSmart webpage so users can be up-to-date with the latest information provided by the department.
Information:
Details about the NSW Shark Meshing (Bather Protection) Program are provided.
Other Safety Programs:
The NSW Government hosts, supports and/or promotes a range of other water safety programs. Links to key programs are provided so user can get the most out of NSW beautiful waterways while staying safer.
All Application Badges
Free
downl.
downl.
Android
4.1+
4.1+
Bug
buster
buster
Android app
App History & Updates
What's Changed
• Receive Push Notification Alerts posted and they are viewable in a new "Alerts" section on the Map
• Updated map includes two additional Maps featuring 'Alerts' and 'Tagging'
• Updated the "Species ID" and included a new section on other species that sting and bite
• A new gallery feature to see a selection of what people are posting about Sharks on Social Media
• Receive Push Notification Alerts posted and they are viewable in a new "Alerts" section on the Map
• Updated map includes two additional Maps featuring 'Alerts' and 'Tagging'
• Updated the "Species ID" and included a new section on other species that sting and bite
• A new gallery feature to see a selection of what people are posting about Sharks on Social Media
More downloads SharkSmart reached 5 000 - 10 000 downloads
What are users saying about SharkSmart
A
by A####:
by A####:
Doesn't work. Waste of time.
R
by R####:
by R####:
Lag crash restart lag crash restart.....
O
by O####:
by O####:
Can't turn off alerts and can't set location.
K
by K####:
by K####:
take you for fast dallding
K
by K####:
by K####:
Good app
K
by K####:
by K####:
Can't stop alerts. Guys you should try dorsal shark app. It's good and you can stop alerts.
J
by J####:
by J####:
Listing needs to have most recent durst not last. Notifications duplicate and are not relevant to my location...
K
by K####:
by K####:
Doesn't work tried downloading 3 times.
W
by W####:
by W####:
Sharkies
K
by K####:
by K####:
Loved it
K
by K####:
by K####:
There is no setting window so it is impossible to set alerts for region or town, or even turn them off when I'm not at the beach. How Stupid. I have had about 20 alerts in the first half hour after installing this app. I will have to uninstall this app to stop this avalache of unwanted alerts !!!! The idea was good but the app is useless.
U
by U####:
by U####:
To the developers: Great app. 3 suggestions: 1. In all the entries in the list, there’s no more than one short line in them. So just expand the capacity in the drop down box to accommodate it so when you tap the location on the map and there’s no need to go to the list unless you want to brows or something. 2. Make the dropdown box appear over water so as not to hide info on the map. 3. Include a sort by alphabet and date for that browsing. To the users: It only seems to crash when you open the app straight after install, from within Google Play. So just back right out of Google Play and make sure it’s not still running (Google Play or the app) in the background and reopen the app from the desktop. You’re welcome. A schooner should do it. (1 each) Tar guys
P
by P####:
by P####:
A good idea but it keeps alerting me to things nowhere near me. No settings to give my location and desired radius. I dont want any alerts, a manual check when im actually at beach would be fine. Also on samsung s4 crashes constantly. And makes phone lag from all the alerts. This would be very easy to fix.
K
by K####:
by K####:
I greatly appreciate the development of this app, & the usefulness of the technology driving gets 5/5 stars. However, please reverse the order that the complete list of alerts are sorted in so that the most recent ones are at the top of the list. Also, the alerts on the map don't link directly to the alert description, instead they only take me to the top of the complete list of alerts.
K
by K####:
by K####:
Firstly i had to scroll to the bottom of the page for a little at of recent sightings etc. Latest should be at top. Also even with gps on it placed me near port macquarie not ballina. Secondly, it causes extreme lag once notifications start appearing. Had to uninstall to get my phone back to proper working order and speed.
K
by K####:
by K####:
Great idea, but has someone actually ever tried to use the app? You cannot mute or even filter alerts, so the app constantly fires alerts. 10 in the last hour, 3 alone while I'm typing this. Not usable at all. Uninstalling.
K
by K####:
by K####:
Great idea but needs to be able select location ans turn off notification if need to. Deleting app as now back from holidays and the notifications are annoying
K
by K####:
by K####:
This app seems to be cluttered with our dated shark sightings. We are in November now yet it is showing sightings around port maquarie from February. On loading request me turn on gps then loads the map for port maquarie anyway, several hundred km from me. Will push alerts through for what appears to be same shark about a dozen times. Tells you its a tagged shark but not the sharks id so dont know for sure if all the alerts come through for the same shark or several different sharks in the same area.
K
by K####:
by K####:
So much work to do on this. Crashes all the time. List of alerts from oldest to newest. Great idea - terrible execution...
K
by K####:
by K####:
This app crashes after you tap on an alert icon, you need to look at the WA Gov Sharksmart app it works properly.
K
by K####:
by K####:
When selecting alert sign at location app stops working . .crash. Alert list has the latest entry at the end of the list and not on top. No way to change ordet
D
by D####:
by D####:
Good app - but risks being dismissed purely as too many users will be flooded with alerts from 100s or 1000kms away. Trees & Forests guys, Info has to be relevant as well as timely. Uninstalled.
K
by K####:
by K####:
Great idea, but the interface is totally unusable, and clearly no one is updating the app. Shame. Needs to be locally relevant and most recent listed first. Pretty obvious. Uninstalled.
K
by K####:
by K####:
Good work and good app making use of the solid research being done by CSIRO and DPI. However the alerts are a bit hard to navigate. Need to be able to sort the list to have new alerts first. Also a "near me" feature to show new alerts near me, at the moment you have to click through all the alerts on the map to see if they are new. Perhaps a filter for alerts in last 24hrs would be handy on the map.
H
by H####:
by H####:
Surely the NSW government got the same software designer for Sharksmart as designed the 2016 census? The concept is good but the implementation is woeful. Trying to find useful information here is slow and frustrating. If I am surfing at a beach, I want to know where the closest tagged shark to me is, what type and size, the date and time of the sighting and if possible with the bouy technology which way it is travelling. This just doesn't cut it. Put some resources into this and produce something useful.
K
by K####:
by K####:
You cannot set the alerts to only your location. This $16mil app is cold comfort when it is buzzing away in my car, not doing anything when people are out surfing. It is also pointless getting multiple alerts when 1 of the <100 tagged shark swims in and out of the 'smart' buoy radar...
I
by I####:
by I####:
Needs to have the most recent sightings at the top, and the date changed to Australian format. Scrolling past thousands of sightings to get to the recent ones doesn't make sense!
Q
by Q####:
by Q####:
Touching the alerts on the map causes it to crash, and the list of alerts are in reverse chronological order which is a terrible idea
J
by J####:
by J####:
Alerts take over the function of my phone and slow performance.
I
by I####:
by I####:
Alert order needs to be reversed in order to be usable. Also, need to be able to filter alerts so that you are able to receive alerts only for your selected beach/es.
K
by K####:
by K####:
Crashes, lists notifications with oldest at the top
S
by S####:
by S####:
This app needs alot of work
K
by K####:
by K####:
I had to scroll to the bottom of the page for a little at of recent sightings etc. Latest should be at top. Also even with gps on it placed me near port macquarie not ballina
Z
by Z####:
by Z####:
Click on a sighting for more info & have to search through every sighting in oz to find a description of it. Needs more work.
K
by K####:
by K####:
Good app
K
by K####:
by K####:
Nice
by I####:
going to be introduced in future. I see it has sightings on the web page.