First National UK Emergency Alerts Test Set for Today, But iPhones Won't Be Included in Testing Until Next Week

[and 1989 others]

Well I’m glad to know my city is hugely in favor of these alerts. Wouldn’t want to live somewhere where people seem to hate each other and not even be willing to put up with very occasional side effects to basic societal conveniences offered and enjoyed everywhere else. How sad for you - I only hope you’ll never need to rely on these services going forward because I can guarantee you’d change your mind instantly. Just sucks that it takes something happening to you before giving a crap about it 🙄. Same exact flow of people that hold rallies for masks - just no semblance of sympathy for others, all about me me me

It's not about 'Hating' people, its about being indifferent and minding your own business.

Personally I would rather not interact with people, and really am not interested in their life or dramas which includes getting alerts to my phone about things I can do nothing about. These sorts of things are why god invented Facebook Groups.

And before your try and get a gotcha moment, I wouldn't burden and entire population with my problems, only the relevant parties and only if they could change something.

 

[testcard]

Yes, I did read the article. Why is the alert for iPhone users restricted to a small region of the country. In Reading both iPhone and Android devices will receive the alert next week. While all UK Android users will receive the alert today but not iPhone users.

I’m not sure that Reading is worth saving.

 

[insoft.uk]

Only 14.5 or later most sticking with 14.3 or lower as they can jailbreak and when 14.5 and later is supported they will be a tool to disable it.😂🤣

 

[Lemon Olive]

I assume that extreme alerts are the worst case scenario, hence the use of the word 'extreme', and the severe alerts are bad, but could be worse, and are therefore not extreme.

Urgent A, Urgent B, Urgent C, Urgent D. Urgent D you don't even really have to worry about.

 

[827538]

I have a feeling you’d change your mind instantly if it were your child’s amber alert. Have some sympathy for others, it’s 1 notification out of thousands that you flip by each month.

“yet to have had any repercussions” lighten up

I agree with you but also, when I first moved to the US the number of Amber alerts I got was obnoxious and made me turn them off. This is living in one of the safest and wealthiest cities in the US, I dread to think of the number that come through in somewhere like LA or NY.

Yeh the person you're replying to is just a bitter individual who's just looking to be difficult.

 

[Kar98]

You’re not missing out. It’s all wrong parent has the kid, a cop hundreds of miles got shot in the leg, some old guy drove his minivan off into the sunset here. Haven’t gotten an actually useful alert on my phone yet, and last week’s “blue alert” spam made everyone turn of these kinds of alerts altogether.

 

[CausticSoda]

And the capital of Scotland is Edinburgh. Why would I care more for what happens in London than Paris or any other city that I have no connections too? If London sunk to the bottom of the ocean tomorrow, I would still to to work and buy my groceries. It wouldn't be any more or less eventful than something happening to Paris, Berlin, or New York.

Wow! What a load of boring and often vitriolic comments. We get it! Your are pro Scottish independence. Whoopeee! You'll get another chance to vote soon enough by the looks of it, so wait until then and get on with it. Just as you aren't interested in what happens in London, I don't think the majority of people on this forum care what you vote for or whether Scotland becomes independent or not. Give the bile a rest. Yawn...

 

[Dunk the Lunk]

I support these if they are provided by each countries government. I don't give a monkeys if there is a ballistic missile heading for London, or some Londoner is on a rampage killing other Londoners for whatever daft reason, that doesn't affect me in the slightest. I care about my own country. And even still, it should be opt in. When Covid started we were bombarded with notifications from both the Scottish government and then the English government repeating the same messages and sending out unsolicited text messages that they have still to apologise for nor have someone take responsibility with repercussions.

We were united in the European Union and finally starting to put old scores behind, pushing towards being states within the EU, united with all sorts of people, people that share our values. But we are now cut off from our friends and family in the EU, though the world goes on, just a little worse. England now serves no purpose, that doesn't mean I wish harm on the people, I wish to end the division by breaking up the UK so we get away from vastly opposing cultures and start pushing forward on issues that matter to Scotland.

It’s ironic (not to mention sad) that you’re all about leaving old scores behind, being united with people, shared values etc when it comes to the EU. But yet your posts are clearly anti-England, and in particular anti-London, which is doubly ironic considering London was massively pro-Remain.

By the way the EU (Directive (EU) 2018/1972) requires all EU states to set up an public emergency text alert system by June 2022. Given this directive was issued when the UK was still in the EU and passed into UK law, it is being forced on you by the EU.

 

[Damian83]

wondering if "pub owners strike" will be a severe or extreme alert

 

[Reason077]

Personally I would rather not interact with people, and really am not interested in their life or dramas which includes getting alerts to my phone about things I can do nothing about. These sorts of things are why god invented Facebook Groups.

You're not going to get alerts about things that don't affect you. You should only ever get one of these alerts if it's some sort of disaster that directly affects you and you need to take action. Hopefully, you should never see one of these alerts!

 

[twistedpixel8]

This should be opt-in and not opt-out. The English government sent everyone in Scotland (outside their competency) a notification about Covid which is a devolved matter and should have been sent out by the Scottish government. No one opted in to receive that notification and no one has yet to have had any repercussions.

Which notification was this? I live in Scotland and I don’t recall any English covid notifications.

 

[ruka.snow]

By the way the EU (Directive (EU) 2018/1972) requires all EU states to set up an public emergency text alert system by June 2022. Given this directive was issued when the UK was still in the EU and passed into UK law, it is being forced on you by the EU.

And because it comes from the EU I should suddenly be a-ok that it has you opted in by default and people I have no interest in engaging with can send me an txt message? My stance doesn't change. I should not have received a txt message I did not opt-in too and these alerts should be opt-in only.

 

[ruka.snow]

Which notification was this? I live in Scotland and I don’t recall any English covid notifications.

They sent an txt message on the 23rd March 2020. No opt-in, no way to unsubscribe, no way to reply. So far they have refused to provide a way to opt-out of future messages.

 

[Frustratedperson]

I have know idea who or what a Hancock is so can't comment. As for tracking, I don't think I could give a monkeys. Regardless of what governments are currently in power and if I support them or not, just put up a screen that lets users make an informed decision if they want to opt-in to emergency alerts with information on who is allowed to send them, for what purpose, and who is accountable. Ideally add a geofence so if I opt in I don't need to be bothered if some crazy is doing something a hundred miles away. And don't send me a txt message.

You don’t care about being tracked? Never understood that mentality. My business is my business.

 

[philosopherdog]

This should be totally opt in. I hate these alert systems. Apple should step up and make this a system level opt in privacy setting. Governments are hammering my phone all the time with this crap.

 

[Santiago]

On my iPhone 12 (in the USA), under Government Alerts, there are 3 separate settings:

• AMBER Alerts
• Emergency Alerts
• Public Safety Alerts

They are independent and ALL can be switched off.

There's an additional unlisted level, "Presidential Alert", which cannot be switched off, and is for national emergencies. It has never been used in the US outside of a few tests.

 

[ruka.snow]

You don’t care about being tracked? Never understood that mentality. My business is my business.

If don’t want tracked you need to walk about without phones, watches, cameras, and tablets. There is only so much you can do to avoid it and there are better bridges to die on.

 

[Dunk the Lunk]

Which notification was this? I live in Scotland and I don’t recall any English covid notifications.

ruka.snow is conflating the early days of the outbreak (when there was complete harmony, cooperation and joined up thinking by the four governments (eg see this joint document https://assets.publishing.service.g...uide_to_what_you_can_expect_across_the_UK.pdf), not to mention the passing of the Corona Virus Act 2020 which applied across the whole UK (https://www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/explainers/coronavirus-act) and was passed with support of the devolved administrations) with the period from May 2020 when there was greater discord and divergence.

 

[entropys]

That they are going for a more complex solution than a simple SMS alert that e everyone would receive regardless of OS and can be location specific as well, like most countries do, should prompt the question what else the app does they aren’t telling you about.

 

[Reason077]

That they are going for a more complex solution than a simple SMS alert that e everyone would receive regardless of OS and can be location specific as well, like most countries do, should prompt the question what else the app does they aren’t telling you about.

There's no app involved here. Specific locations are selected at the cell tower level. Any compatible device within range of targeted masts will receive the alert, even if you don't have mobile data etc activated.

 

[Tech198]

No one heard of a radio ? If there are technical problems as well, there its done. Not much good in able to sent these warning if no one can receive them because signal is out.

this is another one for the blooper-reel "oh , we never thought of that one' .lol

 

[cdrider]

So nearly all of the US has turned this off years ago because it’s more of a nuisance than anything. Why the UK is just getting around to implementing it? What for, Boris grams? Subliminal marketing? If you ask me it should be removed from the OS entirely.

Because when Covid started there wasn't a way to get info out quickly. The Government had to ask all mobile networks to send a text. It's quicker and easier to have an emergency system.

 

[mazz0]

If there was a zombie apocalypse you can bet people would be more worried about how to get to the beech to sunbathe than that their neighbour was eaten by a zombie.

Oh come on, we all have a plan ready for what we'd do in a zombie apocalypse, right?

Mine involves making padded armour. Seems to me if your enemies' only weapons are teeth and fingernails it should be pretty easy to avoid getting scratched. I'm thinking a layer of padding on the inside thick enough that if any teeth or nails puncture the outer layer they can't get through the inner one, and the outer layer would be leather or something that isn't going to get torn up easily

 

[VulchR]

You’re not missing out. It’s all wrong parent has the kid, a cop hundreds of miles got shot in the leg, some old guy drove his minivan off into the sunset here. Haven’t gotten an actually useful alert on my phone yet, and last week’s “blue alert” spam made everyone turn of these kinds of alerts altogether.

Be thankful you do not live in interesting times.

 

[machpost]

If don’t want tracked you need to walk about without phones, watches, cameras, and tablets. There is only so much you can do to avoid it and there are better bridges to die on.

Why would someone be so mad?