Mobile Emergency Alert System

[Yel]

I really don't see the issue with the government testing emergency alerts on phones. People can disable the feature if they prefer so they don't have to go to all the effort of clicking to acknowledge it

Countries like Japan regularly use it. While the UK isn't as tectonically active it does make sense to at least make use of the tech incase it's needed. We've had a helicopter hovering above with a loud speaker giving advice in the past, makes much more sense to make use of phones for stuff like this.

Seems another "I'm not a sheep, they're taking control" thing that people jump on

 

[JuneJuneHannah]

If the government hack my phone they will be pretty bored within seconds

 

[MsGilmore]

 

[Jelly Bean]

 

[Cheddar Chalpupa]

Is it weird that I kind of want to go somewhere really public to hear them all going off?

 

[Sea]

You know if people want to have alerts let them, if they don't that's fine too. But what I find offensive is the mocking of either group.
What I find super offensive is that since covid, everyone who goes against the norm group pattern is banded under tin foil/anti vaxxer/Conspiracy theorist - When it should be respected as freedom of choice.

Are we in a modern Britain or are we in a society where anyone going against the grain should be marked with an equivalent of a scarlet letter?

Freedom to choose

 

[Deeznutslol]

I have a Galaxy S8, my partner has a newer version. We both searched for the switch off feature, but could not find it on our phones. I think this is another aspect that has really angered me, we were not given a choice.

Just because you were incapable of using your phone to switch off the alert and stop the notification coming through, does not mean that your choice was taken away.

 

[Miss.Chanandler.Bong]

 

[Welshgal]

Don’t people realize that if it were like big brother there wouldn’t be an option to turn it off?!

 

[Oohthedrama]

Did you all survive the phone beep. 🫠

Waiting for the reports on Mail on line about how many died and landed face down in their Yorkshire puds.

 

[Yel]

Apparently 88% of the public support it, makes sense to make it auto opt in for me.

People on GB news are calling it the goverment hacking into your phone to spy on you . Rather than the gov making use of a feature built into phones.

An argument against it is because no one was killed in the wildfires last year. How does that make sense? You plan for the worst rather than waiting for a disaster before making reform (as is what usually happens).

If there was a disaster that could have been partly mitigated with tech people would bemoan the government for not making use of the feature.

 

[TheShire]

What are we supposed to do anyway if there was a genuine emergency ,I’m not going outrun a tsunami or nuclear bomb

I find this very ignorant and pretty offensive.
Tsunamis can usually be avoided with warning systems. People need to get to slightly higher ground to avoid drowning.
I lost my aunt and uncle in the 2004 boxing day tsunami. They were in the basement minimarket. If they had of had a few minutes notice they could have stayed in their apartment and survived it.
If there was a tsunami warning system in places and communicated by phones then most of the 230'000 people that were killed that day would have survived. Getting onto land 15 metres higher would have saved many of them. Ten mins notice would have saved most of them. But there was no notice so hundreds of thousands were right on the seafront when a wall of water hit.

 

[anotheronebitesthedust.1]

Honestly have no idea why people have their knickers in a twist about this alert thing so many countries have it already in place . Uk just happens to behind with the times

and yes some phones won’t harm gone off with the alert.
when I lived in nz , they were always doing alerts to evaluate the system, how cell towers would respond and the ability for mobile phones to receive the alert. All phone networks now will be looking into the protocols to see what went wrong hence why it’s a TEST

 

[Curly]

It’s baffling the amount of people getting their knickers in a twist about an alert.
Other countries use it, there is a justification for it yet our country seem to make a big song and dance and it’s portrayed by people as a negative.
If it helps in disasters etc then surely it’s a good thing?

 

[JuneJuneHannah]

I've turned it off. I feel it should be an opt-in rather than opt-out.

I may turn it back on again one day. Who knows. I'm certainly not in the "I'm not a sheep" camp.

Those are just my views on it. If other people want it then fair enough and I won't judge.

 

[iLoveMeSomeCanoles]

I just got a test alert on my phone!!! 14:21 on 2nd May.

 

[Yel]

Oh no, everyone's going to drop their roast dinner

---

It’s baffling the amount of people getting their knickers in a twist about an alert.
Other countries use it, there is a justification for it yet our country seem to make a big song and dance and it’s portrayed by people as a negative.
If it helps in disasters etc then surely it’s a good thing?

It's bizarre how people are already decided that'll be awful, if it really does turn out to be a nuisance you can turn it off in seconds. They only use it in threats to life in other countries, so that'll probably be the same and barely used in the uk. It's not going to be used every time there's some wind!

 

[monga]

What are we supposed to do anyway if there was a genuine emergency ,I’m not going outrun a tsunami or nuclear bomb

 

[Yel]

I was under the impression the alert would go off even if your phone was switched off so if anybody is switching phones off make sure to turn the alerts off in the settings in anycase or let the battery run down just to be sure - I cannot find confirmation but just spoke to my dad who seems to recall hearing something similar

No it won't go off if your phone is off, or not in signal or on aeroplane mode.

I'm sure people have been saying it will though, there's been an insane amount of misinformation about it. Bringing all the loons out.

 

[LaBlonde]

Mine didn’t even go off. Husbands did, totally underwhelming and both of us still have intact brains

kinda sad that i didn’t drop my roast dinner from fright and the microchip in my vaccine didn’t ignite superpowers like the internet promised me would happen 🥲