Good2Go
Here's how the Good2Go app works. (It's a little complicated.) Suppose you have the app on your phone, and you wanted to have sex with somebody. You would pull up the app and hand it to your prospective sex partner.
The app asks the partner to record whether he or she is "sober," "mildly intoxicated," "intoxicated but good2go," or "pretty wasted."
If the possible partner answers "pretty wasted," he or she is informed that consent can't be given and told to return the phone to its owner. If the partner gives their preliminary consent, they are asked for their phone number and a confirmation code is texted to their device to confirm their identity. They then have to go back to the original phone and type in the confirmation code - only then is the consent considered legitimate.
The Fight for Affirmative Consent
Following the passage of a California bill that would require young men and women on college campuses to obtain "affirmative consent" with potential partners before engaging in sex, the Good2go app could theoretically make it easier for individuals to get this consent in a more concrete way.
Indeed, the app's developers state that one of the goals of the app is to facilitate clear communication between potential partners. However, the app itself has received criticism for its implicit role in allowing partners to replace actual communication with an automated consent process.
Slate's Amanda Hess writes that the app fails to properly inform users that every agreement is recorded and logged in the Good2Go system along with the individuals' phone numbers and level of sobriety. This poses a problem for people who do not want the details of their sex lives being stored in the database of a virtually unknown mobile development company. It poses an even bigger problem for individuals who may have originally told the app they were "good2go" but later changed their minds. (The app's creator, Lee Ann Allman, assured Hess that the data wouldn't be released unless it were subpoenaed.)
Good2Go or Better Off Said?
Upon gaining the consent of his or her partner, Good2Go reminds the phone's owner that this consent may be revoked at any time. But there is no way for an individual to indicate to Good2Go during sex that he or she is no longer interested. For this, partners must rely on old-fashioned attentiveness and verbal communication - precisely the skills Good2Go has essentially sought to replace.
Brett Sokolow, President and CEO of the NCHERM Group and a leading sexual assault consultant to top colleges around the country, is doubtful that the app will catch on amongst young people and worries that it could cause more harm than good. "I have concerns about the app, primarily that students seem to think it is absurd, and that the creators have not satisfied the concerns about fraudulent entries giving cover to rapists in court," he told Business Insider via email.
While the app was presumably designed to consider the interests of both parties, Hess points out that it may actually do more to protect someone falsely accused of sexual assault than to help a real victim. While the answers users provide are not legally binding, Reason pointed out that they could be used as evidence in an investigation if a dispute arose at a later time. In this way, the app places all of the responsibility - and, implicitly, all of the blame - squarely on the user who tells the app that they are "good2go," whether they really are or not.
Good2Go is not the only app out there that aims to prevent sexual violence. Sokolow went on to say that one app he likes to recommend is Circle of 6, a tool designed for college students that allows them to choose a circle of 6 close friends who can be notified at any time of the user's location and situation when the user is feeling unsafe. The app is private and has a spin-off, Circle of 6 U, specifically designed for college students that allows them to include a hotline and emergency numbers specific to their student body.
With regard to Good2Go, Sokolow made little effort to hide his reservations. "It may have merit in fostering conversations around consent, but I think there are other ways to do that, too," Sokolow said. "Students will determine on their own what has value to them, so I don't advise them one way or the other on this."