Emergency test broadcasting message on phone

[TheTroubleWithShoes]

Has anyone else had this?

I just woke up, a minute before my alarm went off, to my mobile making a very loud rather frantic beeping noise.

It took me a minute to work out what it was but when I looked it said it was a test of the emergency broadcasting system and that I didn't need to do anything else.

Has anyone else had this happen?

Yes, I was in holiday in the Netherlands. I was out in a busy shopping street and everybody's phone went off simultaneously!

Just a test though. I hadn't known it was a thing before then either.

I had this. It freaked me out. It said it was from O2 thpugh and I'm not on 02 so I'm guessing it's some sort of scam.

Um (sets off another scare - sorry!) you don't think it could be a cyber attack like in USA at the moment? Or a warning of one or (more likely as we have had heavy rain & flood warnings) a flood warning

@BottomOfTree I doubt the petrochemicals plant has a text alert. The police go knocking on doors when the toxic alert goes off here, along with messages all over Facebook.

I always freeze when I hear a siren. I can never remember which one means get out and which one means stay inside!

How is no one else commenting on the bear?! autumnboys this is terrifying - did you have to hide from the bear? Was it just wandering around a city centre, or looking for honey perhaps?

@Pootles34

How is no one else commenting on the bear?! autumnboys this is terrifying - did you have to hide from the bear? Was it just wandering around a city centre, or looking for honey perhaps?

I wondered that too😂

I was on holiday in Tokyo when there was a small (by Japan standards) earthquake at 2am in the morning. It was a multi story hotel with mostly Japanese people staying there. I could hear alarms on phones going off in all the rooms around me. I got nothing

There is a article in the telegraph from end of Feb saying O2 are going to start testing these from March. It’s behind a paywall so can’t see details. I’d have lost my shit if it went off at 7:45 in the morning!

I read that message as "In future, alerts like this one may be used to warn you about a danger of lie ins "

🤣🤣🤣

I can see how they’d be useful. We had a toxic cloud blow over here once and knew nothing about it until it was all over.

The alerts were all over the local news and Facebook but we dont go on those pages 24/7 so hadn’t seen it. And all the local businesses had been contacted but we hadn’t gone to any shops.

We were supposed to have stayed indoors with the windows and doors closed but were actually merrily chilling out outside for most of the day.

@Chwaraeteg

I had this. It freaked me out. It said it was from O2 thpugh and I'm not on 02 so I'm guessing it's some sort of scam.

Some of the other providers ride on the O2 network, though, like Tesco.

Holy shit. I would have wee-d myself in terror if my phone did that.

I really really want to know if this was a scam text or if it's real. And whether the people who got it were are in a particular bit of the UK or just scattered about the country. Aside from nuclear stuff, when would this be used for the whole country?
Brr.

@SallySycamore

Yes, I was in holiday in the Netherlands. I was out in a busy shopping street and everybody's phone went off simultaneously!

Just a test though. I hadn't known it was a thing before then either.

That's dreadful.

@mumwon What's this about a cyber attack in the US?

@RhubarbTea

Holy shit. I would have wee-d myself in terror if my phone did that.

I really really want to know if this was a scam text or if it's real. And whether the people who got it were are in a particular bit of the UK or just scattered about the country. Aside from nuclear stuff, when would this be used for the whole country?
Brr.

Yes, it makes me want to get rid of my phone!

I don't understand why we DON'T already have these. In the States they happen for storms, floods, earthquakes, etc. (When my dad was on holiday in Hawaii, he got an emergency alert about an incoming missile which turned out to have been sent in error.)

Before mobile phones in the States, towns and cities had an emergency alert siren that could be heard for miles. They would test our city's every Friday at 11am, but if you heard it outside those times you get off the road and under cover.

This thread reminded me of this test amber alert which was sent out in error in the USA and features Chucky and Glen from the film Child's Play 😀 www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-55925674

From something I read ages ago, mobile networks must have an over ride built in, it's how the US turned Iraq off before they attacked with their shock and awe.

The capability is essential but it also provides an enemy opportunity.

I am also interested in the bear.

The mobile networks are all implementing cell broadcast at the moment - it's been something that's been bimbling on in the background for years (there were some tests in 2013), but started coming into closer focus with an EU law that mandated it for member states. Then COVID came, and the government realised it didn't have an effective way to contact people other than SMS, which took days to run, and cell broadcast is the obvious way forward.

Cell broadcast allows the government (via network operators) to add a broadcast message to a cell or group of cells that will be received by every mobile in the area. There's various different priorities - the higher priorities will take your phone off mute and turn the volume right up, so you won't miss it.

It's better than SMS as it's a single message that everyone receives, and there's no privacy concerns - they don't know how many or who received the messages.

It's already in place in a number of countries - Netherlands, New Zealand, Israel and the US have had it for a while.

Out of interest OP, where (roughly) are you?

evil does cell broadcast depend on internet at all?

I am not sure what's an acceptable time for a test but 7 ish is not it!

We live inside the alert area for Broadmoor, and until fairly recently they tested sirens every Monday at 10am (one of them was a hundred yards from the school where I worked, and loud enough that you couldn't hear each other speak in some parts of the school while it was sounding) They were useful when Year 4 was studying WWII, they used to make Anderson shelters from the desks and everyone went under them when the siren sounded. Since we've been living here (almost 30 years) there have been two genuine alerts and a couple of false alarms. Our local sirens have recently been deactivated as alerts will be sent 'by Internet and Twitter' according to the letter the school got. Maybe they will add mobile alerts as well?

You don't happen to live anywhere near a flood plain, do you?

They had Bear Patrol in Springfield but Homer was annoyed that he had to pay extra tax for it.

7 o'clock is a bit antisocial. I'm amazed anyone OK'd that - but I don;t work for O2. They obviously get up early in Slough.

Cell Broadcast doesn't depend on the internet unless you want it to - the message is distributed using the mobile operator's own network.

Thanks Evil.

I missed the bear post. That's amazing! I'd probably have been of those idiots who goes to find it and gets eaten. It isn't every day that you get to see a bear after all!

Sympathies to those who have been woken up in the early hours or while driving by a similar alert, especially for a genuine event. The test was terrifying enough.

It is genuine. O2 confirmed it and there's a lot of pissed off people on Twitter who had the same.

I think it's a great idea, but perhaps they could have waited for a more reasonable hour before running the tests.