iPhones have an Emergency SOS feature. This feature is added into iOS to help people quickly and easily contact the local emergency services in a crisis. In case you ever need to use the Emergency SOS feature, we'll show you what you need to know below.
How to Use Emergency SOS
As we mentioned, to use Emergency SOS you'll need to access the slider from the Power menu. This is the screen where you swipe the bar to turn off your iPhone.
To access the emergency slider on an iPhone 8 or later, press and hold the Side button and either Volume button. Slide the Emergency SOS slider to the right of the screen and this will make the call.
On an iPhone 7 or earlier, press the Sleep/Wake button five times and the menu will appear. Then slide the Emergency SOS slider to the right of the screen to make the call.
If you're still stuck on this step, Apple has a guide on its support pages to help you further.
What Is the Emergency SOS Feature?
Emergency SOS is an iOS feature that allows users to contact emergency services in a crisis from the power screen. An option appears below the power slider, which you can use to activate Emergency SOS.
Once you use this slider, your iPhone will automatically call the local emergency services without you needing to dial. This means that you can use this feature while abroad, and it will automatically call the emergency services for the country you're in.
Emergency calls are placed like a normal emergency call, meaning the call will connect through other networks if your iPhone can't connect to yours.
You can also enable an option to place the call if you hold down the Power button combination for 5 seconds. This will not require you to use the slider or interact with the screen in any way; perfect for if you need to make the call secretly.
After a finished call with the emergency services, your emergency contacts will be alerted via text message, unless you cancel this option. If your emergency contacts have been alerted, your iPhone will share your location with those contacts for as long as your iPhone is powered on and in SOS mode. You can stop sharing your location using the option in the status bar.
How to Make Sure Auto Call Is Set Up
Auto Call allows you to make the Emergency SOS call on your iPhone without needing to touch the screen or the slider. If you keep holding down the same buttons for Emergency SOS for five seconds, the call will automatically start.
To make sure Auto Call is toggled on—or toggled off if you don't want to use it—open the Settings app. From here tap on Emergency SOS, and then you'll see the toggle for Auto Call.
For Auto Call to be on the toggle needs to be green and for off, it will be greyed out.
You'll be able to tell if Auto Call is working when you try to use the feature. Your iPhone will vibrate, rather violently it must be added, on each second of the countdown before it makes the call. A siren will also sound in the final three seconds.
How to Set Up Emergency Contacts
If you don't already have emergency contacts set up on your iPhone, this is another useful feature for an emergency. Your emergency contacts display in your Medical ID; you can find out how to set up your Medical ID if you're not sure. Your emergency contacts are also notified in Emergency SOS, so they're useful to set up in advance.
To add an emergency contact open the Health app and tap on your profile in the top-right corner. Find the Medical ID button and tap it. Tap Edit, and then find the Emergency Contacts section.
Tap on the green Add button to choose a contact and their relation to you. Once you've added your emergency contacts, tap Done to save your changes.
Now your emergency contacts have been saved to your Medical ID. You can access this at any time from the Health app.
Stay Safe With Your iPhone
While it may sound a bit strange, your iPhone does have some useful features to help you out in an emergency. Hopefully, these are features that you're never going to have to use, but it's good to have them set up and ready just in case.