Not long ago, location-sharing apps were seen as niche tools, useful for meetups, perhaps, but hardly essential. That’s no longer the case. In Southeast Asia, they’re fast becoming embedded in daily life, especially among families navigating a region that’s growing older, more urban, and more digitally connected.
The shift isn’t happening in a vacuum. Rising safety concerns, from missing children to an ageing population at risk of dementia, are pushing families to seek new ways to stay connected and protect loved ones. In Malaysia alone, nearly 14,000 children have been reported missing since 2014. Dementia cases are projected to triple by 2050. In this environment, location-sharing is no longer just a convenience; it’s a form of digital caregiving.
At the same time, household dynamics are changing. As extended families become more dispersed across cities and even countries, technology is filling the gaps once held by neighbourhood watchfulness or nearby relatives. Apps like iSharing, which has seen over 40,000 daily active users in Malaysia, are responding to this need with real-time updates, SOS features, inactivity alerts, and long-term route tracking. These tools are designed not only for parents keeping tabs on their children, but also for adult children monitoring elderly parents, or couples looking out for each other during commutes and late-night outings.
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Malaysia has proven to be one of the most receptive markets for these tools, combining high mobile penetration, increasing crime-related anxieties, and culturally ingrained family-centric values. While the demand mirrors that of more mature safety tech markets like South Korea and Japan, the urgency in Southeast Asia is unique, driven by a blend of rapid urbanisation and uneven access to public safety infrastructure.
Privacy, however, remains a sticking point. Many apps struggle to balance utility with user control. iSharing’s opt-in model, encrypted data protocols, and user-defined sharing groups reflect a growing awareness that trust is the currency of the safety tech space. As the market matures, families are no longer just asking if they should use these tools; they’re asking which platforms will protect them without compromising their privacy. We speak to Yongjae Chuh, Chief Technology Officer and Co-Founder of iSharingSoft, about their growth in the market and what it means to ethically use these services.
Safety tech is becoming part of everyday life, especially for families. What social or demographic shifts are driving the adoption of real-time location sharing in Southeast Asia?
We’ve identified two key user segments driving adoption of our location-sharing technology. The first group comprises younger users who value the convenience and social connectivity of sharing locations with friends, whether it’s for meetups, safety during nights out, or simply staying connected. The second, and more dominant, segment includes families and partners who prioritise the safety of loved ones, especially children, elderly parents, and significant others. In Malaysia, this need is underscored by rising concerns where nearly 14,000 children have been reported missing since 2014, and dementia cases are expected to triple by 2050. These alarming figures highlight a growing demand for digital safety tools that offer peace of mind.
As traditional community structures shift and urbanisation accelerates across the region, families are turning to technology to fill the gap. Our solution is designed to meet these evolving needs, providing a reliable and discreet way to stay connected and ensure loved ones are safe.
Malaysia is emerging as a key market for iSharing, with over 40,000 daily users. What makes this market particularly responsive to digital safety tools, and how does that compare to places like South Korea or Japan?
Malaysia’s strong responsiveness to location-sharing tools is driven by several key factors. Parenting styles across the country tend to prioritise child safety, mirroring patterns seen in other East Asian cultures. At the same time, smartphone usage among children is rising rapidly, giving families new tools to stay connected. Unfortunately, this is happening against a backdrop of increasing social crime rates, which have significantly heightened public awareness around safety. High-profile reports of missing children in recent years have further intensified concern, prompting many families to adopt digital solutions as a form of preventive care.
This proactive mindset aligns closely with adoption patterns observed in our more mature markets, such as South Korea and Japan, where family-centric values and safety-conscious behaviour are also strong drivers. As Malaysian families navigate modern parenting and urban living, the need for real-time, discreet safety tools is becoming an essential part of everyday life.
Many consumer apps struggle to balance usefulness with privacy. How do you approach user trust, especially when location data is central to your service?
Privacy is at the core of our design philosophy. From the start, users who have full control over who can view their location must explicitly approve each connection and can add or remove people from their sharing groups at any time. Our platform supports opt-in, content-based sharing, meaning users decide exactly what information is shared and with whom. This level of precision ensures that sharing is intentional, not automatic. To safeguard user data, we use end-to-end encryption and follow strict security protocols.
Our systems are regularly audited, and we work closely with cybersecurity experts to uphold the highest standards of data protection. These measures reflect our deep commitment to user privacy and safety, especially when it involves families and loved ones. As a result, we’ve earned the trust of over 50 million users worldwide and maintain an impressive 4.8-star global rating, which is proof that our approach is both secure and user-focused.
The app includes features like SOS buttons, inactivity alerts, and automatic notifications. How do you determine which tools are truly valuable across cultural and generational lines?
Our product development starts with a personal understanding – most of our team members are parents of children and have elderly parents living in different cities or countries. While we are core users ourselves, our mission extends far beyond personal needs to ensure all families worldwide have access to essential safety tools. This authentic user perspective, combined with behavioural data from our global user base, helps us continuously optimise features that serve diverse family needs. For example, we recently enhanced our emergency alarm service to automatically record and deliver surrounding sounds when alarms are sent.
Unlike Google Maps or Find My, which only show the current location, we provide route history so families can understand movement patterns. This helps parents know if their child took their usual route to school or helps caregivers monitor if elderly parents are maintaining their regular routines. We also adapt features culturally, like developing chat functions for US users who use the app more socially, or driving reports for North American users who rely heavily on vehicles.
Southeast Asia is ageing rapidly, and dementia care is a rising concern. How are you designing your platform to be intuitive for elderly users, not just caregivers?
We design for maximum simplicity and ease of use. Upon opening the app, users immediately see the map view showing everyone’s location, and the SOS alert is accessible with a single tap. Unlike other location services that only show current position, we provide up to 90 days of location history and route patterns, which is especially valuable for elderly users and their families to monitor daily routines and detect any concerning changes in movement patterns.
Recognising that elderly users want to see their grandchildren’s locations, we also offer a desktop application with a bigger screen for easier viewing. Our low battery consumption technology, which uses only about 1% of the battery even after 24 hours, is particularly important for elderly users who may forget to charge their devices. With Malaysia’s dementia cases projected to triple by 2050, we’re committed to making safety tools that work for everyone, regardless of age or technical comfort level.
Looking ahead, what role do you see location-sharing platforms playing in the next decade of digital life, especially as we move into an era of ambient computing and AI-driven personal safety systems?
We are on a mission to evolve into a full-fledged safety intelligence platform. As ambient computing becomes more integrated into daily life, we envision a future where location sharing is seamless, context-aware, and deeply intuitive, enhancing family security while preserving user trust and privacy.
This next phase includes potential integration with IoT devices, wearables like the Apple Watch, and even pet trackers, expanding our offering from human safety to comprehensive protection for the entire family. Looking ahead, we anticipate the rise of AI-driven predictive safety features capable of identifying risks and preventing incidents before they happen. Throughout this evolution, user control and privacy will remain paramount. Our platform will continue to empower users to decide what, when, and with whom they share. The strong response in Malaysia, evidenced by a 182% year-over-year increase in user acquisition, demonstrates the growing demand for intelligent, future-ready safety solutions that meet the needs of modern families.