Five myths over government’s emergency alert system debunked

Misinformation is circulating on social media, with experts warning it could lead to harmful consequences

Social media is abuzz with conspiracy theories and misinformation about the government’s emergency alert system which is set to blast from phones within days.

The UK Emergency Alert system is intended to be used in life-threatening situations including flooding and wildfires and will be tested this Sunday.

The test will be received on 4G and 5G mobile phones, along with sound and vibration for up to 10 seconds even if devices are on silent.

Though touted by the government as a "vital tool to keep the public safe in life-threatening emergencies", advances in smart technology or government initiatives are often met with scepticism and the system has sent certain corners of the internet into a frenzy of conjecture.

Bizarre conspiracies have surfaced ahead of Sunday’s test - including the notion the alert is an “activation signal” for the “pathogen” in the Covid vaccine, among others.

This theory is one of several circulating on social media, with experts warning of potentially harmful consequences.

The emergency alert will appear in this format on devices (Cabinet Office)

Pippa Allen-Kinross, news and online editor at Full Fact, a charity of fact-checkers and campaigners, said: “We have seen multiple instances in which bad information about the emergency alert has already been shared thousands of times online.

“Be careful what you share on social media. Misinformation about this alert may lead to unnecessary alarm, and in some instances, may even cause people to opt out of future alerts (as many online have claimed they already have) based on incorrect information.”

Ahead of Sunday’s test, Full Fact has debunked five of the most troublesome instances of misinformation spreading about the alert online:

Emergency Alerts won’t match personal data with information collected during the pandemic

Claims on social media suggesting that the emergency alert system will allow personal data to be collected, and that this will be matched with data collected when people signed into venues during the pandemic, are not true, Full Fact said.

The cabinet office confirmed to the charity that the alerts will not collect personal data. The alerts will also not enable the government to know if phones are active or where they are.

The government website describes the alert as “one-way” and confirms that the alert does not require the government to know any individual phone numbers. Since no data is collected by the Emergency Alert system, it isn’t possible for it to be matched with personal data collected during the pandemic.

Besides, the NHS Covid-19 app did not share personal information, such as someone’s name and address, with local authorities. It shared the time and date an infected person visited a venue.

The alert is not an ‘activation signal’ for the vaccine ‘pathogen’

Full Fact also highlighted a conspiracy theory that the emergency alert test was an “activation signal” for the “pathogen in the shot”.

This appears to be a reference to the Covid vaccines—with “the shot” commonly referred to this way on social media, although none of the posts directly specify that they relate to Covid vaccines.

There’s no way a signal from a cell tower could “activate” a pathogen or anything that was in the Covid-19, or any other, vaccine, Full Fact said.

Dr Al Edwards, associate professor in biomedical technology at the University of Reading, told Full Fact: “There is no mechanism known to physics or biology that could connect radio signals set by mobile phone data systems, to the biological or chemical materials found in vaccines.”

The emergency alert will not access your personal data

When an alert is triggered, all cell towers in the area concerned will broadcast the alert to connected devices.

The government does not need to know your location or phone number to do this. The cabinet office confirmed to Full Fact that no personal data is collected by the alert.

The alert will not be a text message you need to reply to

The alert will not be a message that needs to be replied to, but a notification that will need to be acknowledged before you can keep using your phone as normal.

What it will contain, however, is a website link containing further information relating to the threat and how you can best protect yourself from it.

The cabinet office confirmed that phone calls won’t go to voicemail if you haven’t acknowledged the alert and the alert won’t stop a phone call in progress.

Other notifications will also still come through to your phone. However, in order to answer a call or view notifications, you will need to acknowledge the alert.

The emergency alert test will not ‘breach GDPR’

Full Fact identified claims online suggesting that phone network providers have breached GDPR by allowing the emergency alert to take place.

When an alert is triggered, mobile phone masts broadcast it to every compatible phone and tablet within range. The government won’t be using your personal data, like your mobile phone number, to do this.

This means that your phone network provider has not breached GDPR “by giving your number to another agency outside of your permission”, because the alerts are sent to phones that are connected to cell towers, not via a list of numbers that networks have given the government.

The Independent has contacted the cabinet office for further comment.