Australia’s new national emergency warning system, AusAlert, is all set for an upcoming nationwide test.
On Monday 27th July, the system will send out a nationwide test at 2:00 PM AEST (1:30 PM ACST, or 12:00 PM AWST).
At this time, AusAlert will send a test alert to all compatible devices across Australia. That means smartphones, LTE smartwatches, and LTE tablets.
What to expect during the AusAlert test
When the test is sent out, your device will vibrate and play an emergency siren-like noise for about 10 seconds.
A message will appear on your device screen with the heading “CRITICAL AUSALERT”. Older devices or those running custom operating systems like GrapheneOS or LineageOS may display a message titled “PRESIDENTIAL ALERT” or “EXTREME THREAT ALERT”.
The message will clearly state that it is a test message. No action is required on your behalf when you receive it.
If you don’t receive the test message, don’t worry. It’s a test that’s designed to iron out issues, and some odd behaviour is to be expected.
That doesn’t mean that the test has failed or that there is a technical issue; the test aims to confirm the system is working as intended and how it performs in a real-world scenario.
What is AusAlert?
AusAlert is a replacement for our aging SMS-based Emergency Alert system. Unlike the old system, cell broadcast messages are automatically received by every phone in range of a cell tower.
Messages arrive instantly and aren’t prone to congestion interference. Since they appear as a system notification, they don’t get buried in the messages app either.
AusAlert is set to be feature complete at the end of the month, and is slated for official launch on 1st October.
Once it’s active, the system can be used to notify the public about disasters including the type of emergency, where it’s located, the severity, and what to do.
For information about calling emergency services, check out our guide.
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