UK emergency phone alert could endanger domestic abuse victims - how to turn it off
20.04.2023 - 07:35
/ ok.co.uk
The Government recently announced that on Sunday 23rd April at 3pm they will be testing out the UK wide ‘Emergency Alerts’ test. Emergency alerts are a loud alarm sound and text notification that can be sent to people’s phones as a warning if there is a life-threatening emergency nearby, a severe flood or gas leak for example.The test means that every phone in the country will go off on Sunday as a practice run, even if it’s on silent.
When people are living with frightening domestic abuse, part of their safety plan may be to keep a phone hidden in case of emergencies as they may need to call 999 or contact a loved one for help after their partner has destroyed or taken their main phone. The test alert will sound on a smartphone even if it’s turned to silent, this may inadvertently let an abuser know that there is a hidden phone in the house and put victims in danger.
It is important to get this message out far and wide. You will know someone who is living with abuse, a colleague, neighbour, relative, though you may not be aware that they are, so sharing posts and information about it can help for it to be seen by the right people.Talk about it at the water cooler, mention it to your local shopkeeper.
Spread the word. Women’s Aid have a helpful guide on Instagram for how to disable emergency notifications on iPhones and Androids: On your iPhone Go to the settings app ≥ scroll to notifications ≥ scroll to the very bottom where you should see ‘Extreme Alerts’ and ‘Severe Alerts’ toggles and then turn off.
On your Android Go to settings ≥ scroll to notifications > Advanced settings > At the bottom you should see ‘Wireless Emergency Alert ≥ switch off ‘allow alerts’. Seeking support It is also important to remember that
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