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A “loud siren-like sound” will sound from mobile phones for up to 10 seconds across Britain on Sunday as part of a test for a new emergency alert system launched by the UK government.
Governments and institutions around the world use similar alert systems in life-threatening situations such as terror attacks and hazardous weather. The alert, usually sent as a notification or text message, warns people in danger’s path to evacuate or stay safe.
In the UK, the test of the warning service caused a backlash in some, with some officials and organizations encouraging people to turn off the service.
Here’s what you need to know.
What happened?
People with smartphones across Britain, including visiting tourists, will receive what the government says is a “loud, siren-like sound” accompanied by a vibration, on Sunday at 3pm.
“It will appear on the home screen of your device and you will have to acknowledge it before you can use other features,” the British government said in an announcement about the alert.
The alert will be sent through cell phone towers, which will warn anyone in danger. They are intended to be used “very rarely,” the British government said in a statement, adding that the alert would only be used when there was an “immediate risk to people’s lives.”
Who else uses the same sign system?
Similar warning programs are used around the world, including in the United States, Canada, the Netherlands and Japan. They don’t always meet, as happened in Florida on Thursday when the test signal was sent at 4:45.
As it would be used in the UK, alerts are sent in emergency situations, such as mass shootings, floods, fires, tornadoes and other natural disasters. When a gunman opened fire on Michigan State University’s campus in February, students were alerted to the situation via text message and many waited for emergency system updates late at night.
In some cases, it has also been used to warn residents not to use city water when operations at water facilities have been disrupted.
Some in the UK don’t like the sign.
Sunday’s test of a new emergency alert service has sparked a backlash. For some, the alert, which can sound for up to 10 seconds, seems annoying. Jacob Rees-Mogg, Member of Parliament for North East Somerset, told his followers Twitter to “turn off unnecessary and annoying alerts.”
For others, the alert raises serious privacy concerns. Refuge, an organization that helps women and children suffering domestic violence, advises survivors of abuse to turn off the service, out of concern that phones hidden in the home could be turned off.
In response to the criticism, the British government said it was working with organizations working with “vulnerable women and girls to ensure they are not affected by the introduction of emergency alerts,” adding that they could opt out if necessary. phone to be hidden.
Others have worried that alerts could access personal information on phones, such as location data, but the UK government says there is no need to worry because the alert system works through mobile phone towers. Personal data and exact location will not be collected or shared, the government said.
How can people avoid being marked?
Alerts can be turned off by searching your phone’s settings for “emergency alerts,” and turning off “severe” and “extreme” alerts.
Britons can also avoid receiving test alerts on Sunday by switching off their phones or putting their phones on airplane mode during the test.
Not everyone will receive a test mark.
Alerts will only sound on phones with the latest software available, such as iPhones running iOS 14.5 or later and Android phones and tablets running Android 11 or later.
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