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UK launches emergency phone alert system to warn of 'life-threatening situations'

meritez

ULTIMATE Member

Phone users will be unable to use other features on their devices unless they acknowledge the alert, which is due to be sent on Sunday April 23.

The system - modelled after similar schemes in the US, Canada, the Netherlands and Japan - is intended to be used in life-threatening situations including flooding and wildfires.

The alerts on St George's Day will appear on the home screens of people's phones, accompanied by a loud warning sound and vibration.

The scheme will initially focus on the most serious severe weather-related events, with the ability to get a message to 90% of mobile users within the relevant area in an emergency.
How are mobile broadband routers going to react to this?
 
The obvious concern I think is if there is no quick emergency call (999) mechanism to override it, it will get some bad negative feedback.

I expect routers probably wont be affected, as it will be using code on smart phones which likely doesnt exist in mobile data routers.
 
Got 2 such alerts in the past 6 months in Europe. One in Germany (they were testing it) and one in Romania (there was a bear nearby). Both ocassions scared the bejesus out of us, everyone's phones blasted at full volume, thought ww3 started. 😅

It'll be fun and on a serious note, this is such a powerful tool, I'm surprised they're only implementing it now.
 

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Does anyone have a reference regarding the siren-like sound implementation on Android and iOS? Currently I'm expecting my routers to receive the SMS and forward to my mobile but I guess RutOS/OpenWRT doesn't have the functionality to trigger a sound-generating device. I wonder what my mobile will do on receiving three copies? 🤔

 
Does anyone have a reference regarding the siren-like sound implementation on Android and iOS? Currently I'm expecting my routers to receive the SMS and forward to my mobile but I guess RutOS/OpenWRT doesn't have the functionality to trigger a sound-generating device. I wonder what my mobile will do on receiving three copies? 🤔

I think this is a special kind of broadcast, not sms (4G or 5G only btw).
Sms forwarding won't help here.
 
I think this is a special kind of broadcast, not sms (4G or 5G only btw).
Sms forwarding won't help here.
The nearest thing I've seen to the described is some sort of scam alert meant to look like an incoming SMS that I screen captured at the time as I was convinced there would be no record of it. Searching online I can't see anyone reporting the same symptoms. Some years ago so don't recall what was in the title bar of that alert as that was the only giveaway I could search against. Was really impressed with that scam and never worked out what was able to generate it under Android. I speculated it was an email or SMS causing it.

Found a reference for the official ones: https://www.androidcentral.com/amber-alerts-and-android-what-you-need-know

My Android 11 mobile has an "Emergency information" app which I wonder whether is related.
 
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I'm still researching to understand it but from what I can see there are national variations and ours is based on EU-Alert and it uses the Cell Broadcast Service (CBS) latest spec is 3GPP TS 23.041 V18.1.0 (2022-12)

Emergency alerts work on:
  • iPhones running iOS 14.5 or later
  • Android phones and tablets running Android 11 or later
If you have an earlier version of Android, you may still be able to receive alerts. To check, search your device settings for ‘emergency alerts’.

You will not receive UK alerts if your device is:
  • turned off or in airplane mode
  • connected to a 2G or 3G network
  • wifi only
  • not compatible
 
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I think this has been in android for quite a while, on rooted phones its possible to turn this function off, I left it alone but did wonder what it was used for.
 
I think this has been in android for quite a while, on rooted phones its possible to turn this function off, I left it alone but did wonder what it was used for.
You don't need root to turn it off, which is nice :).

The thing that gets me, is why there isn't a test category. I can enable "extreme" alerts without enabling "severe alerts". But there's no separate "test alerts" category. I don't know if this is a design choice in the GSM spec.

Also, I don't know whether the UK will send an "extreme" alert or a "severe" alert next month.
 
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You don't need root to turn it off, which is nice :).

The thing that gets me, is why there isn't a test category. I can enable "extreme" alerts without enabling "severe alerts". But there's no separate "test alerts" category. I don't know if this is a design choice in the GSM spec.

Also, I don't know whether the UK will send an "extreme" alert or a "severe" alert next month.
Prior to a year ago Android devices had a generic US-centric Cell broadcast settings app with a Test alert channel switch. There was also an amber alert switch.

Then a Google play system update In the UK for Android 11 and above introduced a UK specific Cell broadcast settings page, Which removed the test channel switch.
 
You don't need root to turn it off, which is nice :).

The thing that gets me, is why there isn't a test category. I can enable "extreme" alerts without enabling "severe alerts". But there's no separate "test alerts" category. I don't know if this is a design choice in the GSM spec.

Also, I don't know whether the UK will send an "extreme" alert or a "severe" alert next month.
I have discovered today via tiktok, but it would have been helpful for you to explain how, which I will do.

Search for the setting called emergency notification in android settings search box, its hidden otherwise but revealed when searching for it.

Hence me saying it required root as I only seen it visible previously after rooting the phone.
 
I have discovered today via tiktok, but it would have been helpful for you to explain how, which I will do.
Thanks for sharing the instructions. I agree that was helpful of you and I could have also but, in my defence, I didn't realise the setting was hidden!

Being fed up with Android settings constantly being regrouped and reordered (and also there's MUI vs stock, etc), I instinctively just use the search for any setting...
 
Thanks for sharing the instructions. I agree that was helpful of you and I could have also but, in my defence, I didn't realise the setting was hidden!

Being fed up with Android settings constantly being regrouped and reordered (and also there's MUI vs stock, etc), I instinctively just use the search for any setting...
I know the feeling, might start doing the same. They simply cannot leave the UI alone for 5 minutes.
 
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