Techniques for achieving personal security via mobile devices are presented. A portable mobile communication device, such as a phone or a personal digital assistant (PDA), is equipped with geographic positioning capabilities and is equipped with audio and visual devices. A panic mode of operation can be automatically detected in which real time audio and video for an environment surrounding the portable communication device are captured along with a geographic location for the portable communication device. This information is streamed over the Internet to a secure site where it can be viewed in real time and/or later inspected.