SharkSmart
Beach-safety alerts the NSW coast relies on
SharkSmart is the beach-safety program of the NSW Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD). We have delivered and run it since 2014. It was originally delivered on Mobiconnect and now runs on M4, the platform Mobiconnect became.
The Program
One coastal safety platform, from detection to alert
SharkSmart brings together tagged shark detections from listening stations, sightings from beach patrols and drones, and beach closures into one platform. The public see it in the SharkSmart apps for iOS and Android, including smartwatches, and in the SharkSmart web app. DPIRD staff and partners work in it every day.
Authorised users from DPIRD, Surf Life Saving NSW, drone operators, drumline operators and shark meshing contractors each see what their role needs. Trusted users publish alerts in real time; other reports go to a review queue first.
How SharkSmart is assembled on M4
SharkSmart uses all three. The core signs people in, manages their permissions and answers questions with the AI assistant. Alerts and scheduled data are extended for beach safety. The operator tools are custom modules plugged into the same core.
Core · configured
Shared features every program uses as they are. We run them, secure them and keep them current for everyone.
Extended capability · extended
A core feature we extend for your program, with your own fields, rules and behaviour, without changing it for anyone else.
- Alerts
Publish alerts to the people who need them, carrying the detail your program depends on.
- Data feeds
Bring external data into your program on a schedule, mapped to the way your program uses it.
Custom modules · crafted
Modules we craft only for your program and plug into the core, so they use features like sign-in, media, notifications and data.
- Beach-safety operations
The operator tools behind a statewide shark-safety program.
Alerts with the detail people act on
Alerts carry species, beach, drumline and detection detail, and push notifications carry the species, the beach and a photo. They reach phones and smartwatches, so swimmers and surfers know before they go in.
The same live picture, without installing anything
The SharkSmart web app shows alerts on a map, beach conditions and tides, tagged shark tracks, species and the AI assistant, from the same program as the apps.
Activity across the coast at a glance
The operator dashboard shows alerts published, tagged detections, individual sharks and active stations by region, with each tagged shark’s path between stations. It is a custom module, crafted only for SharkSmart.
Field tools for the people on the water
SharkSmart PRO gives DPIRD staff, contractors and beach-safety organisations the tools to log an alert, choose its type and location, and send it for publishing or review.
Answers from SharkSmart’s own safety content
SharkSmart’s AI assistant answers beach-safety questions from the program’s own knowledge base, in the app and the web app. It is part of the M4 core, configured for SharkSmart and managed with the rest of its content.
Question: When is the safest time to swim?
Answer: Swim at a patrolled beach, between the red and yellow flags. Avoid swimming at dawn and dusk, in murky water and near river mouths after heavy rain, and check the SharkSmart app for alerts at your beach before you go in.
Sources: Safety tips, Alerts, Beach conditions
- AI assistant
Matches each question to the right answer by intent, from content DPIRD already publishes: safety tips, alerts and beach conditions. When the content changes, the answers change with it.
How AI works on M4
Community Shark Bite Kits
Shark bite kits on the SharkSmart map
Bite Aid places trauma kits at beaches so anyone on scene can stop severe bleeding before help arrives. Every deployed kit appears in the SharkSmart apps and web app, so beachgoers can find the nearest one.
Deployed to Suit the Client
Its own infrastructure, the same M4
The DPIRD program runs on separately provisioned infrastructure (its own network, load balancer, database cluster, storage and release branch) for compliance. It runs the same M4 codebase, released on its own schedule.
SharkSmart in depth
The public program, the field app behind it, and the community kits on its map.
Project type: Government · Public safety
SharkSmart
SharkSmart is NSW Government’s platform for shark detections, beach alerts and cross-agency coordination. It runs on M4, and we have delivered and run it since 2014.
Read case studyRuns on M4
Project type: Government · Public safety
SharkSmart PRO
SharkSmart PRO is the field app that NSW DPIRD staff, aerial and drone teams and SMART Drumline operators use to create and send shark alerts across NSW.
Read case studyRuns on M4
Project type: Public safety · Mapping
Community Shark Bite Kits
A shop, kit register and locations map for Bite Aid’s community-funded shark bite kits, assembled from the M4 core and run by our team, with every deployed kit shown in SharkSmart.
Read case studyRuns on M4
Tell us about your public-safety program
We’ll show you what M4 already covers, what we’d extend and what we’d craft for you.