When your arse accidentally dials the emergency number
26.6.2023
Translation: machine translated
A worldwide phenomenon is blocking important resources of emergency control centres. So-called pocket calls have led to a record number of accidental emergency calls in recent weeks due to an Android function.
Butt-dials or pocket calls: You've probably already received one of these unintentional calls or made one yourself by mistake. In recent weeks, these have become more common at emergency call centres, particularly in the UK and Germany.
Such cases are particularly precarious, as it is not immediately apparent to the employees in the relevant emergency call centres that the call is a false call. They cannot simply end the call. They first have to make sure from the sounds that it is an unintentional call and not a real accident.
Cause of the problem
The fire brigade and Google are now advising users to regularly check for updates so that the problem can be resolved quickly. Samsung has also responded and published instructions on how users can manually switch off this emergency function on their Galaxy smartphone.
Automatic emergency calls on the iPhone too
The iPhone also has a function that has recently triggered several faulty emergency calls. For example, the local police near Nashville in the US state of Tennessee complained about countless emergency calls. The reason: a crowd celebrating in a mosh pit at a festival.
Apple has since made several algorithm adjustments to minimise these false alerts. However, the system can still trigger a warning signal for various activities or sports such as skiing.
Cover photo: DANIEL CONSTANTE/Shutterstock
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