The idea of using crime rates from a specific area is vague in itself. Not all crime is committed by people living in the community where the actual crime is committed. Unfortunately the area precinct must report the crime thus accepting the responsibility. For example the FBI only follows eight main crimes. Auto theft is one of them. If a person steals the car from Ohio but is caught in Denver, Denver gets the hit. The system is broken. The app is a great idea but only adds fuel to a fire that wouldnt exist if people would do their own research. Thanks for the reply!

there are neighborhoods that are dangerous and are heavy with gang activity. Some of them have rules such as you have to whined down your window before you drive into them or you could be in some serious trouble. The local community members might know these rules and areas to avoid but an outsider normally wouldn't.

A few years ago in my country a tourist wondered into a bad neighborhood because he was following a map and wanted to use the quickest route to get where he was going. He got shot and killed because they thought he was a member of some rival gang coming to invade their territory.

You might think its unfair to label someones neighborhood as a bad area but imaging of it was your child or family member wondering on the streets and something bad happened to them on the way to their destination that could have been avoided if they were using an app like this. I'm not saying its perfect but it gives peace of mind knowing that they are avoiding these known areas.

There should be not be much concern about this app/feature because to get a patent approved it has to pass through a panel of many professionals in that field of study and considerable research must be presented to show that its practical. My guess is that one of Microsoft's sources for identifying these areas would come from the local law enforcement and other crime fighting agencies.