Government, Emergency and Enhanced Safety Alerts on iPhone
Find out how to receive and manage emergency, government and enhanced safety alerts on your iPhone.
About Government and Emergency Alerts
You can receive emergency, government and public safety alerts on your iPhone. In the event of an emergency, your iPhone may display:
Alerts issued by your country or region's government
Alerts involving imminent threats to safety or life
Alerts for extreme weather conditions
AMBER alerts (America’s Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response)1
Public Safety Alerts1
Additional information that the alert originator provides2
You can also receive emergency, government and public safety alerts on your Apple Watch.
1. AMBER alerts and Public Safety Alerts aren’t available in all countries or regions.
2. Some government alerts can’t be turned off. Refer to your local government’s emergency alert policy to find out more.
Manage your Government Alerts preferences
By default, Government Alerts are turned on for your device.3 When you receive a government alert, you’ll hear a special sound that’s similar to an alarm. If you want to turn these alerts on or off, follow these steps:
On your iPhone, open the Settings app, then tap Notifications.
Scroll to the bottom of the screen.
Under Government Alerts, turn the type of alert on or off.4
3. Government Alerts are supported when using a SIM card or eSIM from a supported network provider. For more information, contact your network provider.
4. In some countries or regions, you may not be able to turn off Government Alerts.
Choose to receive Test Emergency Alerts in the United States
When your iPhone is connected to a network provider in the United States – using a US SIM, eSIM or while roaming in the US – you can enable Test Emergency Alerts. By default, this is turned off. When you receive this type of alert, you'll hear a sound that's similar to an alarm, and the alert will mention that it's a test.
Government test alerts are available with US network providers, including in Puerto Rico. Your local government is responsible for the content and frequency of the test alerts. You can disable this feature at any time with the following steps. For more information, contact your network provider.
If you're using iOS 15.4 or later
To turn Test Alerts on or off:
Make sure your iPhone is using the latest version of iOS (iOS 15.6 or later).
Open the Settings app, then tap Notifications.
Turn Test Alerts on or off.
If you're using iOS 15.3 or earlier
To turn Test Alerts on:
Open the Phone app and tap Keypad.
Enter *5005*25371# and tap the Call button
. You'll get an alert that says "Test alerts enabled".
To turn Test Alerts off:
Open the Phone app and tap Keypad.
Enter *5005*25370# and tap the Call button
. You’ll get an alert that says “Test alerts disabled”.
About Enhanced Safety Alerts
Enhanced Safety Alerts are available in the United States and Taiwan and require iOS 26.2 or later.
Enhanced Safety Alerts can provide supplemental safety alerts for emergencies such as earthquakes or floods based on information from alert originators. These alerts are sent over Wi-Fi and mobile data when available. These alerts are delivered by Apple and will appear and sound different to a Government Alert sent by your local government. Your iPhone can receive Earthquake Alerts and broadcast them anonymously to nearby Apple devices.
If you enable Improve Alert Delivery, your approximate location will be shared with Apple to improve alert timeliness and reliability. For example, Earthquake Alerts received on iPhone in California, Oregon and Washington (including bordering regions) may be delivered quicker and more reliably when Improve Alert Delivery is turned on. An active mobile data plan is required for Improve Alert Delivery to be effective when your Apple Watch is not connected to a companion iPhone or Wi-Fi network. Apple does not store your approximate location data.
If Government Alerts are enabled and issued by your local authorities via provider networks, your iPhone may receive them in addition to Enhanced Safety Alerts. With Improve Alert Delivery turned on, Enhanced Alerts may be delivered faster than Government Alerts.
Not all safety features are available in every region or language. Network conditions may affect alert timeliness and reliability.
About bi-level earthquake alerts
In the event of an earthquake, bi-level alerts use separate notifications based on the severity of the earthquake and your proximity to it:
Awareness Alert: an awareness alert notifies you when an earthquake is detected nearby and that you should prepare to take action if necessary.
Action Alert: an action alert is labelled as critical and notifies you when you’re in an area where strong shaking is expected and should take immediate action.
Both alerts provide the estimated magnitude of the earthquake and your proximity to it, as well as suggested actions to keep yourself safe.
Manage your Enhanced Safety Alerts preferences
Earthquake Alerts and Imminent Threat Alerts are turned on by default, and Improve Alert Delivery is turned off by default. To adjust any of these settings:
On your iPhone, open the Settings app, then tap Notifications.
Scroll to the bottom of the screen.
Under Enhanced Alerts, tap Enhanced Safety Alerts.
Tap Earthquake Alerts, Imminent Threat Alerts or Improve Alert Delivery to turn it on or off.
Find out more
Find out how to set up emergency alerts for Japan