AT&T rolls out mandatory 'Presidential Alerts' feature to iPhones; cannot be disabled [View all]
Source: PC Magazine
AT&T has started to push out a carrier update that will now allow owners of various versions of Apple's iPhone to receive important Wireless Emergency Alerts. The update itself is mandatory, in that users have no way to decline it once they get the message that the over-the-air update has been installed.
Before you start worrying that your device is about to be inundated with emergency messages of all kinds – including zombie attacks – know that it is possible to turn of notifications for AMBER Alerts and Emergency Alerts within your iPhone's settings menu. Although, given the nature of the alerts, it might be in your best interests to keep then enabled for now.
The alerts – mandated by law, notes AT&T – don't use up any texts or data on your device when they're sent out. They're also geographically targeted; Obviously, you'd probably wouldn't be that interested to know that a tornado is bearing down on some city a few states away versus, say, one that's about to hit your hometown.
... The only alert that users can't technically opt out of are "Presidential Alerts," which are exactly what the phrase sounds like – alerts issued by the President or a designee. That's one of the caveats of the Wireless Alert and Response Network Act that established the national emergency alert system starting in 2006.
Read more: http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2420547,00.asp
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