Dispatchers say they get at least 20 false calls every day

Feb 23, 2018 09:21 GMT  ·  By

The new Emergency SOS feature released by Apple for the iPhone is the one to blame for no less than 1,600 false calls to 911 since October, according to dispatchers.

And surprisingly, emergency teams in Elk Grove and Sacramento County in California say they receive at least 20 such 911 calls every day from what appears to be an Apple service center.

While it’s not exactly clear why the iPhones that are probably brought in for repairs end up dialing 911, dispatchers told CBS that the false calls were first noticed in the fall of the last year. Apple launched new iPhones in September 2017 and they went on sale later the same month and in November, but it’s not clear if these new devices are in any way related to the increasing number of accidental calls to 911.

On the other hand, one of the reasons could be the Emergency SOS feature that Apple has developed for iPhones and the Apple Watch. On iPhone, dialing 911 with this feature can be done by just holding the side button and either volume button, and this functionality is enabled by default.

Apple says it’s investigating

Dispatchers complain that these false calls could increase response times for other emergencies, and Apple says it’s investigating to determine how exactly so many iPhones end up dialing 911 by accident.

“The times when it’s greatly impacting us is when we have other emergencies happening and we may have a dispatcher on another 911 call that may have to put that call on hold to triage the incoming call,” a 911 dispatcher has been quoted as saying by the cited source.

“We’re aware of 911 calls originating from our Elk Grove repair and refurbishment facility. We take this seriously and we are working closely with local law enforcement to investigate the cause and ensure this doesn’t continue,” Cupertino explained.

Since the calls are made from a service center, it’s believed that dialing 911 could be part of a validation procedure post repairs, though engineers should be able to cancel test calls. It remains to be seen if Apple provides any further details in this case, but judging from the company’s modus operandi, there’s a better chance it remains tight-lipped on everything.