False alarms generated by Apple’s iPhone 14 series’ Crash Detection feature are causing issues in Japan, with fire departments near ski resorts receiving more emergency calls than usual as a result of the automated calls.
Per the AppleInsider, the Fire and Disaster Management Agency of the Internal Affairs and Communications Ministry has warned smartphone users about crash-detecting technology in smartphones and other devices due to a rise in automated attempts to contact aid when it is not required.
The Kita-Alps Nagano Fire Department, which serves five municipalities in Nagano Prefecture, has struggled with this issue.
The report stated that from December 16, 2022, and January 23, there were 919 emergency calls, of which 134 were fraudulent calls, with Crash Detection in a skiing area accounting for the majority of these calls.
Similar to this, from January 1 to January 23, the Gujo City Fire Department in the Gifu prefecture received 351 emergency calls, 135 of which were false alarms.
Although the feature may be disabled, one firefighter said that since it is useful in situations where a serious accident has already happened, “we can’t ask users to turn it off”.
