How to turn off UK wide emergency alert which could put domestic abuse victims at risk

A nationwide emergency alert will set people’s phones off for 10 seconds at 3pm on Sunday 23 April.

Domestic violence charities are concerned the alert could give away secret phones people experiencing abuse are keeping hidden.

Some abusers confiscate or control a primary mode of contact, often forcing people to keep a second phone.

These secondary phones can be an important form of communication with family and friends.

Women’s Aid and Refuge have issued advice about how to turn the alerts off.

How to turn the alerts off

It is not enough to switch your phone to silent mode as the emergency alert will override this.

A message will pop up along with a sound and vibration that will stop automatically after 10 seconds.

On iPhones and Android phones and tablets, people can search settings for “emergency alerts” and turn off “severe alerts” and “emergency alerts”.

On Huawei devices running EMUI 11 or older, search settings for “emergency alerts” and turn off “extreme threats”, “severe threats”, and “show amber alerts”.

Refuge has created a video talking through the steps of turning off emergency alerts for both iPhone and Android devices.

There is also more information on securing devices on their dedicated tech safety page.

Mencap has produced an easy read guide to the emergency alert and how to turn it off, which you can read on their website.

Switch off to be safe

The other option is switching off the device entirely or putting it in aeroplane mode before 3pm on Sunday 23 April.

The alert uses tower technology to send the alert to phones on 4G and 5G networks.

Because the message comes through almost immediately after the alert is issued, it is understood it will not come through with a delay as a text message would.

No personal information – such as telephone numbers, identity or location – is collected by sending the alerts.

Read more:
What the emergency alert is going to say
Date and time set for UK’s first nationwide test of emergency alert system

Emergency alert risks making abuse worse

The risk of having a secondary phone discovered goes beyond losing an important means of communication, Women’s Aid said.

An abuser finding a secret phone “could use this as a reason to escalate abuse”, Lucy Hadley, head of policy at Women’s Aid, said.

What the government has said

The government said it has worked with organisations representing vulnerable groups to make sure they are not adversely affected.

“Women and girls who are subject to domestic abuse and have concealed phones can opt out of the national test either by turning off Emergency Alerts in their phone settings or by switching their phone off,” a government statement said.