The U.K. Emergency Alert System will send loud sirens through your Android device, even if it is on silent mode. This may be kind of annoying, but the government said that these notifications will inform you if there are sudden major incidents around your area.
A man looks at his smartphone as he waits next to the entrance of an undergound station on March 11, 2020 in Milan, Italy. The Italian Government has strengthened up its quarantine rules, shutting all commercial activities except for pharmacies, food shops, gas stations, tobacco stores and news kiosks in a bid to stop the spread of the novel coronavirus.
The country's new alert tool is specifically designed for authorities' usage. Police and other government agencies can use this innovation to send out an urgent alert about terrorist incidents, road accidents, fires, and other dangerous events.
The United Kingdom government announced that its new Emergency Alert System will be available this coming summer. But, before that happens, the government explained that it will still run some tests on the system so that it'll know if the new safety tool works properly on your Android device.
UK's Emergency Alert System
According to Independent UK's latest report, Android devices are not the only ones receiving these loud notifications. The U.K. announced that another test is expected to take place this coming July for iPhone smartphones.
A man uses his smartphone on July 16, 2014 in Tokyo, Japan. Only 53.5% of Japanese owned smartphones in March, according to a white paper released by the Ministry of Communications on July 15, 2014. The survey of a thousand participants each from Japan, the U.S., Britain, France, South Korea and Singapore.
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"This is a mobile network operator test of the Emergency Alerts service," said the U.K. government.
"Emergency alerts are broadcast from mobile phone masts. Every compatible mobile phone or tablet in range will receive an alert," added the government via its official website.
This is only one of the mobile technologies currently developed to help ensure people's safety. Previously, COVID-19 apps were also being released in various countries.
Other Countries Using the Same Approach
Aside from the U.K., 9To5Mac reported that other countries, such as the United States and Hawaii, had already used the same approach.
Back in 2018, iPhone users in Hawaii said that they received a terrifying emergency alert on their devices. However, this was just an error, as confirmed by the officials.
The emergency alert reads, "BALLISTIC MISSILE THREAT INBOUND TO HAWAII. SEEK IMMEDIATE SHELTER. THIS IS NOT A DRILL." This is just one of the main reasons why the United Kingdom really needs to make sure that its new Emergency Alert System has no flaws.
Government officials need to make the new tool as efficient as possible to avoid any sudden panic among the residents of the country, especially during the ongoing pandemic.
For more news updates about the U.K.'s new Emergency Alert System and other similar innovations, always keep your tabs open here at TechTimes.
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Written by: Griffin Davis
