To remind iPhone 10 users not to try reboot their phone this way! Am mortified!

[cricketmum84]

So my phone had a weird glitch today where the screen froze on a particular warning box. I could see the home screen behind the box but was totally unresponsive.

I tried rebooting the phone by pressing volume button and the off button together, phone started to make a siren type noise.... followed by 4 calls from an unknown number which I couldn't answer because the screen was frozen.

Within 5 minutes I had a police van outside and 2 huge policemen with tasers knocking on the door. I apologised profusely and they came and searched the house before leaving. They were really nice and understanding but I felt like a right idiot. Just mortified for wasting their time.

For future reference if you hold down the volume button and the on/off button it contacts the emergency services. If you are ever in a situation where you need help but cannot speak you need to know this!

If you are a dickhead who has frozen your phone you need to press up volume, down volume quickly and then hold down on/off button.

Pressed too soon...and I was going to get an iPhone at my next upgrade.

www.macrumors.com/how-to/emergency-sos-iphone-ios-11/

I must admit I thought it was a story at first. Sorry OP.

That's creepy as fuck.

I'm going to take my abacus, pestle and mortar, and my carrier pigeon and head for the wilds to live off-grid.

@BeckyAnnLeeman but what if the mad axeman in the forest takes you prisoner!? And you don't have an iPhone to make a secret distress call?

Yeah *origamiunicorn' that’s screenshot on my phone as well

Settingings says SOS is side button and volume as well you’ve just got to press the side button 5 times. I could do that easily in an attempt to take a screenshot

Why have 2 very different things using the same buttons?

This happened to me! My DS had hold of my iPhone 8plus and he must have pressed the same combination of buttons as you. I got the siren noise and then suddenly it was ‘what service do you require?’ Absolutely shit myself, snatched the phone off him which caused him to scream like a banshee! The worst thing was my phone was frozen so I couldn’t hang up and it continued to dial 999 once I put the phone down it also sent an emergency SOS text to my mum because she was my emergency contact.

Never been so mortified in my life and every time a car passed the house I was convinced it was the police.

Hahaha. Oh this had made me smile so much. In the best possible way.

Mainly as I deal with 999 calls every day at work like this. I always smile when the officers arrive and it's a technical glitch or kids playing.

I'm glad you're ok, and that the response was so quick. Thank you for making me giggle a bit too

Well that's just great, on my current phone that's screenshot!

Same on my tablet.

This is batshit. What is Apple thinking? I reckon they should be billed for all the wasted police time.

I wonder, has anyone ever been rescued by their phone ringing the police?? If you were in a sticky situation and did this with your phone, it’s hardly subtle, is it, if the phone makes a siren noise?

Also, it’s pretty stupid if the phone freezes so you can’t answer it.

@thegreatcrestednewt I'm not sure it does freeze once you have done it? Mine had frozen beforehand which was why I was trying to reboot it :)

I have an iPhone XS. By default holding down Power and Volume Up together brings up the attached screenshot. You then have to swipe SOS to call 112, and you are obviously free to end the call if you manage to accidentally do that.

Emergency SOS only automatically calls emergency services/112 if you change the default settings - Apple purposely put a swipe screen in place by default to prevent accidental emergency calls like this, so if you went out of your way to turn it on it’s a problem of your own creation surely?

By default, nothing happens if you continue to hold those buttons down. By default, pressing the power button 5 times in quick succession will not place an emergency call. By default, the ‘siren’ countdown sound is turned off. Your device will only behave differently if you modify the settings.

I was turning my phone off and not paying attention as it takes so long to respond (xr, I'm guessing it's trying to make sure I actually want the option to turn my phone off) and when I looked back at my phone I was 3 seconds away from calling the emergency services. It does do a little countdown, and as long as you let go before the countdown is finished it should stop. Not sure about when the phone is frozen though. Useful to know how to restart though as I didn't know that thank you!

Well that's just great, on my current phone that's screenshot! shock

Same. Screenshot for me. iPhone XR.

iPhone XR too, it comes up if I continue to hold down the buttons I'd use to make a screenshot, not if I just hold them quickly. But like the other poster, I have to swipe to make the call.

@lhastingsmua
I can assure that never used to be the case. When I got my iPhone 8 it went straight to the siren and countdown first time I reset it. I had to google to see if I could turn it off. I assume a subsequent update has change the default around due to the large number of accidental activations.

What were they thinking using the same key combination as an existing well used shortcut?

Yes I've seen that also on my iPhone thankfully have been able to stop before actual distress call was sent

They responded within five minutes? With tasers?

Always someone who has to chip in with a “that’s what you get for not using android...”

Did they say how they got your address OP?

It wouldn’t be very good if you tried to do it secretly and a siren went off

Screenshot has always been off button and home button on my iPhones.

My iPhone 6 says I have to press the power button 5 times to call emergency services. Didn’t even know this feature existed until I went searching for it! The only option I have is to enable “Auto-call” - any idea what this means?

@Haworthia yep they did indeed. Trust me I was as shocked as you.

@slashlover I've had to call them out a couple of times before when my teenage son with MH issues has run away and also for a burglary a lcouple of years ago using the same number. DH asked how they had got to us so quickly and they said my address had come up on record as the phone number!

No settings changed or messing around with it thanks to the op who accused me of this! All I've done is add emergency contacts.

Good thing you hadn't moved in the meantime.

Haha true! That would have shaken up someone's evening!!