UK government to begin testing mobile emergency alerts

UK folks could soon be made aware of local emergencies via their mobile phone after the government announced plans to test its new alert system later this year. With support from O2, Vodafone and EE, around 50,000 residents across Yorkshire, Suffolk and Glasgow will be subjected to individual tests which will assess the Cabinet Office's SMS and cell broadcast early warning systems and measure the public's response. Currently, there's no word on whether UK citizens will get to enjoy iOS support for emergency notifications, like their American and Japanese counterparts, but the Cabinet Office plans to publish its findings in early 2014 -- that's if the UK hasn't already been enveloped by a massive fog cloud.

[Image credit: Sussertod, Flickr]

Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless

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Source: UK Cabinet Office (1), UK Cabinet Office (2)