An emergency alert is being sent to UK mobile phones as part of an “Armageddon” test. Around 87 million phones will get an alert when the system is tested this year, the new Labour Party government has confirmed in the wake of Christmas.
The message will say: “This is a test of Emergency Alerts, a new UK government service that will warn you if there’s a life-threatening emergency nearby. “In a real emergency, follow the instructions in the alert to keep yourself and others safe. Visit gov.uk/alerts for more information.
“This is a test. You do not need to take any action.” No date has been set for the test yet. Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Pat McFadden said: “Most countries that have this system test it quite regularly and so we don’t want it just to be once years ago and then everybody forgets it exists.
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“This should be part of our armoury in warning people about major risks.” On the government website gov.uk, the government states: “You may get this alert if you have an Android phone that has operator test alerts turned on.
“These operator tests are not alerting you of real danger. These alerts will always have ‘operator’ in the title and will confirm that no action is needed. If you get an operator test alert, your phone may make a loud siren-like sound for about 10 seconds, unless it’s on silent.”
To stop receiving operator test alerts, search your phone’s settings for ‘emergency alerts’ and turn off ‘test alerts’ and ‘operator alerts’. If you cannot see test alerts or operator alerts, open your phone calling app, use the keypad to enter *#*#2627#*#* and search your settings for ‘emergency alerts’ and turn off ‘test alerts’ and ‘operator alerts’.
If you continue getting operator test alerts, contact your phone manufacturer for help.