Calling For Help

When calling 999

1. Contact the emergency services as soon as possible. Do not assume a call has already been made.
2. State you are a high-risk individual and why. Give your location.  You should state in short, simple language what has happened.
3. Do not put yourself at risk. Identify a safe place to make the call away from danger or use the emergency SOS system described below if it is on the discreet setting.
4. Phones should be on silent if attackers are nearby. On a mobile, dialling 999 can be followed by 55 for a transfer to the police. Also, you can pre-programme your phone as below.
5. Police can also be messaged in an emergency using the SMS service (if the phone has been preregistered for this service).

Using your smart device to call for help

Most smart devices such as mobile phones come with features that can help you call for assistance in an emergency. Familiarising yourself with these features can save time and ensure you get the right response in an emergency. 

Common features include:

• The ability to call 999 from your home screen when it is locked.
• The ability to set up emergency contacts who can be quickly contacted (and sometimes automatically contacted) in an emergency.
• Shortcut keys that you can set up to make a call quickly, to 999 or your emergency contacts.
• The Emergency SOS feature, which provides a simple way to call the emergency services, share location information and message emergency contacts.

There are many types of devices which may have emergency features, including smart phones, smart watches and tablets. While it is useful to understand the emergency features of all your devices, it is important to plan and practise with the ones you use most. If you routinely use more than one device, consider:

• Which devices you will have on you most of the time. For most people, the most carried device is their phone.
• Which devices are the most accessible and easy to use in an emergency. Consider where you keep your devices and how easily you will be able to access them.

There can be some advantages to carrying more than one device to call for help, for example if you drop your phone or have it stolen while getting away from danger, you might still be able to call for help from a smart watch. 

If your employer has issued you a lone worker device, a personal location device or personal attack alarm, it is important to be clear under what circumstances they should be used, how they alert the emergency services and what information they provide.

It is important to identify the device or devices you will use in an emergency, and become familiar with them and comfortable using them under pressure. Take the following steps to make sure you are prepared to use each of your preferred devices in an emergency:

Know your device

• Take the time to understand the emergency features on your existing device, or one you are considering purchasing. You can do this by going through the device settings and reading the manufacturers’ guidance.
• Learn the emergency call procedure for the device and practise using it.
• Consider how the device and emergency features will work over a mobile network or by wifi. For example, understand whether your device allows wifi calling if there is no signal. If you have limited signal strength in your home or workplace, consider changing your network or taking steps to ensure a reliable and resilient wifi connection can be used.
• Consider whether emergency settings will work if travelling outside the UK, and whether you need to change any settings or telephone numbers to ensure you get a local response.
• Make sure any linked devices (such as a mobile phone and a smart watch) work together effectively in an emergency setting. For example, if they are paired, will your smart watch work when away from your phone?

Set up your device

• Consider the security of your device as well as how it will work in an emergency. See NPSA guidance for information on how to Protect your Devices.
• As a high-risk individual, you should consider turning off your location services when you aren’t using them. Usually, emergency features that require these services will turn them on automatically when activated. Check whether this is the case for your device.
• If your device has different settings for normal use and for emergencies (e.g. “location services” and “emergency location services”), make sure the emergency settings are switched on. Smart phones and smart watches that are linked may still have their own settings, so make sure you check both.
• Consider the security of any devices that require Bluetooth to operate (such as a smart watch linked to a mobile phone). Whilst it is more reliable to avoid using devices that rely on a Bluetooth connection, this needs to be considered against the functionality that would not be available without a Bluetooth connection.  If you opt to leave your Bluetooth on, ensure the Bluetooth name for the device is generic (e.g. avoid calling it “Sam’s Watch”).  
• Some smart watches have their own SIM card which allows them to call 999 without using Bluetooth to link to a mobile phone. Cellular devices like these come with many of the same security risks as mobile phones and should be treated in the same way.

Set up your emergency contacts

Adding emergency contacts to your devices can help you quickly reach people in an emergency and share information with them. Most devices allow you to ring your emergency contacts from a locked screen and share your location with them, and have options within the Emergency SOS function (below) to automatically send them an emergency alert that includes your location.

• Consider whether to add one or more emergency contacts, and how your device can be used to contact them in an emergency. You can usually add emergency contacts either through your device’s contact list, the Emergency SOS function or other safety and security apps.
• Choose emergency contacts that are the right people to help you in an emergency. Depending on the type of risk you face, this might include someone from your family, a friend, a colleague or a security manager at work. Ideally your emergency contacts will be removed from the emergency situation and able to keep their phone on them.
• Make sure your emergency contacts know what to do what to do if they are contacted by your device, for example to call the police or notify others. Ensure they have the correct settings on their phone to receive the information, for example making sure calls from your phone will still ring on their phone in the nighttime or when Do Not Disturb Settings are on.
• Practise calling your emergency contacts quickly. This can be done without unlocking your phone depending on your settings.
• Consider connecting your group of emergency contacts in a separate chat group (preferably in an encrypted messaging application) so that they can update each other on what is happening during an emergency.

Set up Emergency SOS on your devices

Most smart devices have an Emergency SOS feature that, when activated, will call the emergency services, share your location information and message your emergency contacts. Emergency SOS is also available via the eCall feature available in new vehicles sold since 2018 and most smart watches with a mobile connection or wifi.

Setting up Emergency SOS features will vary depending on the type of device you have and the operating system it runs on. However, it is easy to do, and information is available online to guide you through the process. 

Once it is set up, take the time to:

• Understand how to activate Emergency SOS on your device. Most devices can trigger Emergency SOS with five rapid presses of the power button. Others might have shorter (e.g. one-click) options. The activation can be cancelled, so you can practise using it, but make sure you refrain from calling through to 999 by cancelling the activation before it gets to that stage. If you can’t cancel the call in time and are connected to the emergency services by mistake, do not hang up. Tell the emergency operator that the call was accidental and that you do not need assistance.
  
  • It is important to practise this several times so that you are familiar with the procedure and comfortable using it. Check whether activating Emergency SOS on your device will trigger a siren. You can change the settings to be noisy or silent. Choosing to have a siren can be useful if you want to draw attention to yourself (e.g. in a public place, to get help), but can be a disadvantage if you are seeking to raise the alarm silently (e.g. if you are hiding from an attacker). Consider the siren settings that will best work for your circumstances.
• Understand how to confirm the Emergency SOS activation. After Emergency SOS has been activated, it will ask you for confirmation that you intended to trigger it, for example by pressing, holding or swiping a button. Some devices have a countdown setting so that if you don’t confirm in the required time, it will automatically activate. If you have this setting, turn it on.
• Understand what will happen after Emergency SOS is activated. Once triggered, your phone will immediately make a call to 999 and may share your location with them. In some circumstances detailed location information will not be shared automatically (e.g. when you have poor signal connection), so it is important to know your location and be able to tell the police where you are. Regularly review your settings to ensure you are also familiar with the information your device will share when activated:
  
  • Will it send a message and your location to your emergency contacts? Normally messages will be sent from your phone number and will include the following:

• Will your device start recording video when activated? Depending on the device, these might be sent to emergency contacts during or after your call to the police. Understand whether your device records video in an emergency and which camera it will use. Make sure your emergency contacts know what to do if they receive an alert with a video recording attached, for example:

Above is an example of a generic message your emergency contacts may receive. You won’t be able to change the message wording itself as it is automatically generated, so it is important to agree with your emergency contacts what they should do if they receive such a message. Consider whether you would want them to call or text you directly, or take other actions such as informing the police or others.