Another testing of National Alert

[MollyButton]

AIBU to ask if people are aware: Apparently there is another test of the national Alert system happening in September. It’s crucial that people are aware it will happen especially those with some disabilities or in DV situations.
https://www.itv.com/news/2025-07-07/emergency-alert-to-hit-mobile-phones-in-national-test-heres-what-to-expect?fbclid=IwQ0xDSwLZMCVleHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHiAMlc8Hi8ZwEEpQytAAAehtyAe2NI34brKfl6iK0bVHV_C09yg-CR3DXf8f_aem_Z9muBhLduhdVxHRtvfwqYw

Why do you think WW3 will occur within 2-3 years?

🙄

You'd rather drown in a flood?

This. I really don’t understand why people wouldn’t want this up and running and working efficiently. It’s not like it’s going off weekly. It will be used if and when there is an emergency. And I’m glad of that, especially with worsening weather due to climate change and the world becoming more and more unstable.

I’m glad to see more testing too as last time it was used, my phone went off about an hour later than everyone else in my family! thankfully it wasn’t actually intended for us, but if that was a real scenario it’s worrying

Alternatively you could just ignore it, but I suppose it doesn't get you anywhere near as much attention 🙄🙄

Yes!!

How can you tell what you are Ant signed up to?

I was at a sporting event that was paused but phones carried on going off randomly for a good half hour. Mine never did.

@

@Ihad2Strokes - nobody is automtically signed up to anything (apart from the government alert system), so unless you've spoken to the Environment Agency or Floodline, then you're not signed up to anything.

If you'd like to sign up, call Floodline on 0345 988 1188.

Thank you, it said it couldn't do it for my address (quite far from any body of significant water) but could for the nearest river. I was really wanting it for when I go away & i'm not familiar with local risks. Will this work?

Which is why they’re continuing to test it and work out the issues

I don't know what you mean? I followed your heeereee link & signed up online. 🤷🏻‍♀️ never mind. It was only for going away to unfamiliar places & I haven't currently got any plans to ' if I do, flooding isn't my major concern.

@MeringueOutang if they can't do it for your address, its because you're not at risk of flloding, but you can ask for warnings for anywhere in England, but the guys n gals who sign you up need a postcode. So if it's a town centre or something, use the postcode for a large shop, public building there.

I live in the Netherlands and we have this. It was actually used a couple of weeks ago, there was a fire at the local industrial estate with lots of toxic fumes, we were advised to shut all windows.

System is tested twice a year, there are also physical sirens that are tested monthly. I find the phone alerts more effective than the big sirens.

@MeringueOutang i suppose you could register for flood warnings every time you go away. You can sign up and withdraw from the service whenever you want.

It might be of interest to know that in Plymouth an undetonated WW2 bomb was found and required 50,000 people to be evacuated. This was quickly achieved using the alert system. It's not 'state control' to hear an emergency alert. What you want to do after you hear it is up to you, but in and of itself there's no 'control' element.

Conspiracy theorist bollocks right there.

It has been used for real. Used for storm warnings and in Plymouth for evacuation due to a huge unexploded bomb.

UK is putting itself on a war footing and increasing the size of our armed forces.

It might be worth reading the defence strategic review - quite an interesting (if long) read.

It depends on your source but 2-5 years is when most believe Russia would be in a position to attack a NATO country.

It may never happen, and any war in our part of the world may predominantly use tactics of sabotage e.g. undersea pipes/cables and interfering with supply lines, rather than traditional war tactics. Who knows. We're already seeing an increase in bank outages, which may be hushed up cyber attacks for all we know.

www.google.com/amp/s/metro.co.uk/2025/03/22/uk-has-just-two-years-to-prepare-for-war-with-russia-former-general-warns-22772084/amp/

www.google.com/amp/s/www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c62v63gl8rvo.amp

They tested a similar system in Germany in March. I had literally just landed in Cologne and my phone started blaring out. It is a very different noise from the normal laerts on your phone. Scared the bejesus out of me!

It is just a modern version of civil warning sirens that some countries have. The French still test theirs every first Wednesday of the month.

@Astrabees it's no more state control than govenrment information leaflets or adverts. You do know that they don't need to have your phone number to send these alerts don't you? The message is not personally sent to you, your phone is just picking up a globally broadcasted message, just like a radio.

How is an emergency alert giving YOU information to keep safe ‘state control’ 😂

I do think there should be a way of opting out as the alerts could cause problems for some people, one example being DV victims with a second hidden phone.

And what if there's an emergency while you're asleep?