The UK’s Emergency Alerts system will be tested on Sunday 7 September at 3pm (although exact timings may vary depending on network).

All 4G and 5G compatible phones and tablets in the UK will receive a test message on the system along with a 10-second siren alarm sound and vibration – even if you have your phone set to silent mode.

This could have an impact on victims of domestic abuse, who may own a concealed phone for safety purposes.

However, you can ‘opt-out’ of receiving these alerts and switch them off through the guidance below.

iPhone

Go to your settings and select the ‘notifications’ menu.

Scroll to the bottom of the page to find the emergency alert notification options.

Then turn off the ‘Severe alerts’ and ‘Emergency alerts’ buttons.

Android

Go to your settings and search for 'emergency alerts'.

Turn off the all the notification buttons for ‘Extreme alerts’, ‘Severe alerts’, and ‘Vibration’.

You also need to turn off the Emergency Alerts testing mode through the following steps:

  • open your phone calling app
  • use the keypad to enter *#*#2627#*#*
  • A message saying ‘mobile broadcast testing mode is disabled’ should appear on screen.
  • If it says ‘mobile broadcast testing mode is enabled’ then follow the above steps again to disable it.
  • You can then search your settings for ‘emergency alerts’ and turn off ‘test alerts’, ‘exercise alerts’, ‘operator defined’ and ‘operator alerts’

On other phones

Depending on the type of phone, the emergency alert settings may have different names, including ‘wireless emergency alerts’ or ‘emergency broadcasts’.

To opt out, search your settings for ‘emergency alerts’ and turn off Severe alerts and Emergency alerts.

The settings can usually be found in one of the following ways. Go to:

  • ‘message’, then ‘message settings, then ‘wireless emergency alerts’, then ‘alert’
  • ‘settings’, then ‘sounds’, then ‘advanced’, then ‘emergency broadcasts’
  • ‘settings’, then ‘general settings’, then ‘emergency alerts’

Then turn off ‘severe alerts’, ‘extreme alerts’ and ‘test alerts’.

On Huawei devices running EMUI 11 or older, search your settings for ‘emergency alerts’ and turn off ‘Extreme threats’, ‘Severe threats’ and ‘Show amber alerts’.

If the above steps do not work, contact your device manufacturer.

You can visit the official UK Government information about Emergency Alerts and how to opt out of them here: gov.uk/alerts/opt-out

Support for domestic abuse victims 

If you have been impacted by domestic abuse, we can support you, even if you haven't reported it to the police.

Our support is free, confidential, and we will never pressure you to report a crime. We can offer you advice about your situation, guidance about the justice system, and emergency financial help too if you find yourself in need as a result of the crime. 

You can contact us through our helpline on 0800 160 1985, fill out a form here, or start a web chat session using the box in the bottom right hand corner of the screen.

If you are in urgent financial need as a result of crime, our Emergency Assistance Fund can help. Find out more and apply on this page.