How to use Emergency SOS on the iPhone

You're walking through a parking lot, looking for your car, and you get a creepy feeling someone is watching you. If you need to call for help you may not have time to take your phone out of your pocket, enter the passcode or face ID, open the phone app and dial 9-1-1. But if you have an iPhone or an Apple watch, you can call police quickly without even touching the screen.

With an iPhone, use the on-off button. With the iPhone 8. X and 11, press it along with the volume button. Hold them down for 3 seconds. For iPhones 7 and older, quickly press the on-off button 5 times. It'll call up the emergency SOS screen. You can slide the button to make the emergency call, but if you just continue to hold down the buttons, it'll sound a very loud alarm and call 9-1-1.

It works on the Apple Watch too. Just press the bottom button, not the crown. If you continue holding it down it'll sound an alarm and call 9-1-1 in 5 seconds. Don't test it because the call will go through.

On Android devices there are a couple of options, depending on which phone you have. If you've got a passcode on your lock-screen, just slide up to see a button to make an emergency call. You'll have to touch your screen, but it's still faster than unlocking your phone and opening the phone app.

Heaven forbid you ever have to use this, but it's good to know you can. And be sure to tell your kids about it.
That's What the Tech? I'm Jamey Tucker

[carter]

Who else clicked their phone real fast then had an anxiety attack when it started calling 911?

[ramtrucks]

Did this by accident it literally scared the piss out of me and I barely canceled it in time

[jmshkm]

I just tried this and the alarm was insanely loud. I think anybody within 200 feet of you would know that something is going on.

[heathbar]

Who else did this by accident and had the living shit scared out of them

[SeanSwann]

It’s all fun n games til your phone is in your pocket and you think your hitting the volume up button. Pulls phone out 5 minutes later and it’s says the police are tracking your current location via GPS. 😮😮😮😮 #truestory

[chloesgrass]

IVE DONE THIS ON ACCIDENT OMG THE ALARM MADE MY HEART DROP

[crybaby]

I did this at school during homeroom on accident.

[magepumpkin]

i accidentally did this once and i nearly had a heart attack
luckily i canceled it before it could send a call
(seriously why did apple add this without telling me)

[RangerHouston]

Got in a real bad accident and my screen was covered with blood so this came in handy a whole damn lot.

[WilliamFord]

I’mma say it again: turn off the SOS alarm sound in Settings > Emergency SOS > Countdown Sound. This is so it doesn’t draw attention.

[elismoothie]

Good editing actually feels like a news segments

[smythers]

About 2 years ago I had an alarm set to wake me up at 4am. I was going to the airport that morning to go to mexico for vacation. My phone bugged out and the screen froze and i forgot about the emergency SOS and start hitting the button rapidly. I BARELY cancelled the call in time. Otherwise I may have called the cops. If they would have come to my house I surely would have been late to the airport lol.

[blueberrysavers]

I got scared to death when I mistaken the volume down button but I managed to cancel it on time giving me only 1 second before I'm in trouble

[tilly]

I just did this and I almost had a heart attack that alarm is so loud 😭 I didn’t mean to press it but luckily I managed to switch it off so the police better not come to my house 😬

[stevenbeck]

THIS LITERALLY HAPPENED TO ME ON ACCIDENT AND I HAD A HEART ATTACK SO I REALLY NEEDED THE EMERGENCY SERVICES LOL

[shermendlakk]

The Manual way is much better because then if you do it by accident, it doesn't automatically call and it still gives you an option to turn off in case it was an accident. And then you don't get the siren beeps because if you're being robbed then the robber could hear your phone go off

[twistedreptiles]

Me trying to take multiple screenshots and the cops show up 💀

[kin]

Somehow managed to do this in my sleep last night, the noise woke me up in the middle of the night and there was a woman on the phone asking what my emergency was

[mocord]

Accidentally did this in school today. Literally scared the shit out of me its so loud everyone thought it was a fire alarm

[insurance]

I accidentally did this while trying to turn the volume up and I freaked out cuz I thought I called 911 immediately and started crying😂