You’ll Soon Be Able to FaceTime With 911
SOS features may not be the most exciting technology announcements, but they can save lives. At WWDC this year , Apple announced that iOS 18 would add live video support for emergency calls, and now the support platforms that power 911 are gearing up to help you communicate with operators face-to-face.
Apple calls this feature Emergency SOS Live Video, and 911 support platforms like Readed and RapidSOS Unite have already announced they will use it when iOS 18 officially launches later this year. Respondents will be able to request a live video call with you, and if you approve, they will be able to start a FaceTime-style chat with you. This comes after Apple announced that iOS 18 will allow you to use satellite messages when you don’t have cellular service.
In addition to video,Emergency SOS already supports text and voice calls and even automatically sends your location to emergency services as soon as you contact them. The live video call feature will help responders identify nearby landmarks and better assess the situation. Here’s what Apple says about this feature:
Emergency SOS Live Video allows users to share information through streaming video and recorded media. During a 911 call, participating 911 dispatchers can request the user to transmit live video or media from the user’s camera over a secure connection, making it easier and faster to receive assistance.
How to Use Emergency SOS on Your iPhone
You can quickly launch Emergency SOS by following these steps:
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Press and hold the Side button and Volume button one until you see the Emergency SOS slider.
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Drag the Emergency SOS slider to the right. This will call emergency services.
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Alternatively, you can hold down the Power button and Volume button and wait for the countdown to start and the alarm to turn on. You can release these buttons once the countdown begins. If you don’t cancel the call before the end of the countdown, your iPhone will call 911.
Additionally, access to Emergency SOS can be configured in your iPhone’s settings. Go to Settings > Emergency SOS to see toggles that let you instead call emergency services with five quick button presses or mute the alarm. There’s also a toggle to prevent your iPhone from automatically calling emergency services after detecting an accident. You should probably leave it on, but it might be useful if you ‘re going on a roller coaster ride . If your emergency is not life-threatening, you can also use Emergency SOS to contact AAA for roadside assistance .
Your Apple Watch also has a useful Fall Detection feature that can save lives . It detects when you’ve fallen, automatically calls emergency services, and sends text messages to your emergency contacts to ensure you get help on time. By the way, here’s how to ensure you don’t accidentally call emergency services .
Emergency SOS Live Video also raises concerns about the well-being of people working as dispatchers. A comment on Reddit notes that this could expose controllers who sign up for behind-the-scenes work to traumatic visual effects. It is hoped that emergency responders will receive significant training and mental health support to cope with the consequences of this safety feature.
Separately, there is another safety feature that allows you to contact emergency services even without a cellular signal. Here’s how to use Emergency SOS via satellite on your iPhone .