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Not receiving amber alerts

Edison53
Good Citizen / Bon Citoyen

Hi. My daughter is wondering why she is not receiving alerts? I thought everyone got these?

56 REPLIES 56

My Note 9 misses some Amber alerts sometime too.  It didn't miss it all the time but sometimes.

 

Also, I was told that Amber Alert supposed to override the ringer setting and Loud tone all the way.  Not mine.  Last night it rings, but very low ring (I think that was my settings)

 

Weird.

 

GPSOTT
Great Neighbour / Super Voisin

Well I'm joining in here. I have missed some alerts. My Samsung Note20 IS configured to get them. I thinking that maybe it's because I had an Apple device before and need to havea new configuration reprovisioning pushed out on the network by the good folks at Public.


@April1974 wrote:

I was wondering why i never received the amber alert yesterday. Before switching to PM i have always recieved the alerts. 


Are you in Ontario?  If your phone switches to 3g but the alert ends before you connect again to LTE, you won't receive it. In some places, 3g or LTE can be stronger than the other.


@April1974 wrote:

I was wondering why i never received the amber alert yesterday. Before switching to PM i have always recieved the alerts. 


My recollection is that you must have phone netowrk set to LTE. If you have it set to 3G, as I do, they do not come through.


>>> ALERT: I am not a CSA. Je ne suis pas un Agent du soutien à la clientèle.

April1974
Good Citizen / Bon Citoyen

I was wondering why i never received the amber alert yesterday. Before switching to PM i have always recieved the alerts. 

Mark_In_Black
Good Citizen / Bon Citoyen

Not at all on this network.  I've had other phones before, older ones that received  them fine on other networks

But nothing on Public.


@Mark_In_Black wrote:

From what I've read, a phone just needs to be lte/4g compatible, which it is.

To clarify, it's the s5 neo  which is only a couple of years old.

 


To receive the official alerts, jump-out-of-your-seat alarm sound and all,  your phone needs to be LTE compatible, you need to be connected to the LTE network at some time during the alert being active, and your phone's software needs to support the feature.

 

As talked about earlier, there are other ways to receive amber alerts, weather alerts, security alerts etc., but those other methods require an app (usually weather related apps) and a working internet connection to receive them. 

dmbcanada
Great Citizen / Super Citoyen

Only one phone in our household received the Ambert Alert.  I have a Samsung Galaxy J3 and according to the Telus website my phone is compatible, yet I never get any alerts.

Mark_In_Black
Good Citizen / Bon Citoyen

From what I've read, a phone just needs to be lte/4g compatible, which it is.

To clarify, it's the s5 neo  which is only a couple of years old.

 

@Mark_In_Black, Samsung S5 is a very old phone and does not support Wireless Public Alerting Service (WPAS).

Tiprix
Model Citizen / Citoyen Modèle

@Mark_In_Black , There are three conditions as per Ready Alert webpageThe wireless device must be:

  1. A wireless public alerting (WPA) compatible device, like a smartphone, capable of connecting to an LTE network (LTE is commonly referred to as “4G LTE”); and
  2. Equipped with the latest version of its operating software; and
  3. Connected to an LTE cellular network at the time the emergency alert is issued or joins the network while the alert is still active.

Mark_In_Black
Good Citizen / Bon Citoyen

Hi there.

 

Just wondering why I'm not receiving amber alerts?  I have 2 accounts on Public and neither one is receiving them.

Both phones are Samsung Galaxy S5.

 

Thanks.

@Eddy_G , as mentioned, all Public Mobile plans can use the LTE network.

I swear that bolded part of Eddy's post wasn't there when I hit the reply button.

 

But my post holds true that the throttled plan will still receive the alert when on a device which will receive the LTE signal.


@Eddy_G wrote:

Hi guys,

 

The device has to be LTE and also the plan has to be LTE not 3G in order to receive the alerts.

 

Also :

 In order for emergency alerts to be received on wireless devices three conditions must be met: the wireless device must be an LTE device like a smartphone, It must be WPA-compatible, and it must be able to access LTE cellular network at the time of the emergency alert is issued.

 

 

I hope this helps,

 

Eddy


Hey Eddy, Public Mobile doesn't have 3G ONLY plans... the restriction of not getting the emergency alert is when the client forces the 3G network on their device.

 

The alert will be received if the LTE network is available, whether it is the FULL or THROTTLED LTE plan.

Eddy_G
Customer Support Agent

Hi guys,

 

The device has to be LTE and also the plan has to be LTE not 3G in order to receive the alerts.

 

Also :

 In order for emergency alerts to be received on wireless devices three conditions must be met: the wireless device must be an LTE device like a smartphone, It must be WPA-compatible, and it must be able to access LTE cellular network at the time of the emergency alert is issued.

 

 

I hope this helps,

 

Eddy

Hmm, I don't know much about that phone, so I'm not sure if alerts are supported. Have you successfully received alerts in the past?

ksoosiah
Good Citizen / Bon Citoyen

@sheytoon I'm using an LG X Power.

Psygineer
Deputy Mayor / Adjoint au Maire

@lheintzman wrote:

@Psygineer wrote:

 

>> Did you bother to read what I wrote . . .

 

Yes I did and I'll let my comments stand. This was an emotional moment and your instructions for turning off the alarm came in the midst of many reports of appalling behaviour across the province. Did not mean to zero in on you quite so specifically. It's possible you didn't intend to be as mean-spirited as it appeared, but your after-the fact justifications come across as somewhat disingenuous. For a few reasons:

A) The technology behind the amber alert system remains a mystery to most people,. It works in some devices and not others for reasons that are not entirely clear. What is clear, as explained in this forum, is that your "instructions" are unlikely to be effectve in any device, whether running IOS or Android.

B) Your boy-calling-wolf concerns are a real head scratcher. If this happened every day, you might have a point. However, in 2018, there were a handful of these alerts throughout the entire country. Where I live, there were exactly three.

We have to trust that the people developing this system know something about their jobs when it comes to policing, search and rescue, etc. I would rather let them decide what is appropriate in terms of geographical deployment, timing and the nature of a particular alarm. They might be refined over time but should certainly not be dictated by the convenience of the population at large.

So should you have refrained from providing these instructions? I dunno. They were kind of useless and sort of unnecessary and possibly beyond your pay grade. But that's your call. Sorry, if you think you were slandered. Since you've anonymized your name, you're pretty much protected.

Hope you're feeling better soon, and I mean that sincerely.


Not going to get into a online battle with you, but again my instructions were on how to turn it on, not off. Sorry that you misread it during the "emotional moment" no harm was meant towards you. You can stand by your comments all you like, I was not asking you to delete them. I was just pointing out you misread the intent. It felt like you read three words then attacked me for no reason. I reread what I wrote and other than missing a closing bracket, I see no where in there where it was mean spirited. Telling someone to check that menu to see if it says on or off was not mean, if anything if that setting did work and it was off, turning it on would be better especially since they wanted it on. Not sure why that was considered mean-spirited. Sorry that you took it that way.

 

The "Boy-calling-wolf" argument I made I probably wasn't overly clear with. It was late, but I was having trouble sleeping so I figured I would come on here to see if I could help anyone and saw you attack against me for telling people how to tell if they accidentally turned it off.

Here is the example that was in my mind.

Amber Alert #1 goes off at 11 am. 
Amber Alert #2 goes off at 3 pm.

Since the "It's over" alarm is the same as the "There is an alert alarm" people might not bother to check it thinking it was just the ending alarm. This kneecaps the effectiveness of the first alert, and even more badly kneecaps the second. Now many people might think the first is over and not even know there was a second one. That is why I dared to suggest they should use two different tones. One to signal there is a problem, and a less harsh normal one to signal the all clear. Again sorry that I offended you.

 

Not sure what you meant by the beyond your paygrade comment. People helping people is the point of these forums. We were trying to figure out why theirs was not working so I told them were it was located. Later we learned those settings mean nothing so yes useless, but I had taken the settings at face value and tried to help someone.

 

The geographic restrictions you appear to be not understanding. The Amber was not issued for my region, the initial alert did not go out. Only the ending one did. I questioned why would they issue an ending alert to a larger reigon than the initial alert.

 

As for annoymous, it's still my username on here. People know me by it (and Spygineer due the typo) and I would appreciate you not trying to tarnishing any reputation I may have with your straw man arguments.

 

Edit: Since we are derailing this thread, I suggest we stop this discussion. I will no longer be replying to you in this thread.

lheintzman
Model Citizen / Citoyen Modèle

@Psygineer wrote:

 

>> Did you bother to read what I wrote . . .

 

Yes I did and I'll let my comments stand. This was an emotional moment and your instructions for turning off the alarm came in the midst of many reports of appalling behaviour across the province. Did not mean to zero in on you quite so specifically. It's possible you didn't intend to be as mean-spirited as it appeared, but your after-the fact justifications come across as somewhat disingenuous. For a few reasons:

A) The technology behind the amber alert system remains a mystery to most people,. It works in some devices and not others for reasons that are not entirely clear. What is clear, as explained in this forum, is that your "instructions" are unlikely to be effectve in any device, whether running IOS or Android.

B) Your boy-calling-wolf concerns are a real head scratcher. If this happened every day, you might have a point. However, in 2018, there were a handful of these alerts throughout the entire country. Where I live, there were exactly three.

We have to trust that the people developing this system know something about their jobs when it comes to policing, search and rescue, etc. I would rather let them decide what is appropriate in terms of geographical deployment, timing and the nature of a particular alarm. They might be refined over time but should certainly not be dictated by the convenience of the population at large.

So should you have refrained from providing these instructions? I dunno. They were kind of useless and sort of unnecessary and possibly beyond your pay grade. But that's your call. Sorry, if you think you were slandered. Since you've anonymized your name, you're pretty much protected.

Hope you're feeling better soon, and I mean that sincerely.


@Alex888 wrote:
@tazmariejadisCheck under Settings --> Notifications --> Government Alerts and make sure that Amber Alerts and Emergency Alerts are both turned on.

Alex, once again, these settings will not change anything.  You cannot turn these alerts off like that on stock software even if you wanted to. 

 

 

From https://www.alertready.ca/#faq  :

"Can I choose which way an emergency alert is sent to me?

No. Regulations mandated by the CRTC require all commercial, campus, community and Indigenous radio and television broadcasters, cable, satellite and IPTV providers, as well as wireless service providers to distribute emergency alerts.

There is no sign-up or opt-in required. Emergency alerts will be automatically sent through these broadcast channels, and to your compatible wireless device.
You cannot opt out of receiving threat-to-life emergency alerts. This is for your safety.

 
Can I opt out of receiving emergency alerts on my wireless device?

No. Emergency alerts received on your compatible wireless device are relevant to you and require immediate attention, and government regulations mandate that all compatible wireless devices receive all relevant alerts.

Unlike radio and television broadcasting, which often has broad areas of coverage; wireless public alerting is geo-targeted and can be very specific to a limited area of coverage. As a result, if an emergency alert reaches your wireless device, you are located in an area where there is an imminent danger." 

 

 

In addition, it is also my understanding that all these alerts are sent as the same priority-type setting. So, even the indvidual Amber Alert settings do nothing. 

Psygineer
Deputy Mayor / Adjoint au Maire

@lheintzman wrote:

@Psygineer wrote:@

From what I read online you can disable the Amber Alerts on iPhone.... 


Why not just turn off your phone? 

 

If you're really this clueless, why not remove the batteries from your smoke alarm, as well? Or is this all about self-absorbed, personal discomfort?

 

According to Peel Regional Police, the amber alert played a key role in finding this poor little girl. Unfortunately, it was too late, but next time, maybe it won't be. "Non-elective surgery", notwithstanding. 


Did you bother to read what I wrote before jumping on your high horse? I was telling them how to check to see if it was disabled. There was no need to be rude. They wanted to figure out why they did not get the alert and I showed the steps on how to check. Was it wrong of me to try to help them that I needed to be attacked like that? If they want it on, then why not let them have it on?

 

I did question if it made sense to sound the same alarm for the "It's Over" as they do for the actual alert as it detracts from the effectiveness. For example, what if there is a second Amber Alert. If people are used to the same Claxon being used to sound the "It's Over" they might not even bother to check and just assume the first one was over. I also questioned why a region over 1000 KM away got the "It's Over" but not the "There is an Amber" and wished they wouldn't have bothered with the "It's Over" when there had not been an initial alert simply because the startle factor popped my stiches and telling me "it is Over" when I didn't know about it in the first place made it a senseless alert without any effective potential. It did lead to people at my work place to attempt to disable it for future occurances, but as I stated I left it on. So I would appreciate if you didn't slander me.

@tazmariejadis Check under Settings --> Notifications --> Government Alerts and make sure that Amber Alerts and Emergency Alerts are both turned on.

@tazmariejadis, if your phone was off, the alert would not be received.  If your phone was not connected at the time the message was sent to LTE, it may have been delayed, or not received.

 

As I mentioned somewhere already, I got the message after turning off my forced 3G connection.   I received one of the two messages at 8 ma the following morning.

tazmariejadis
Great Neighbour / Super Voisin

I have an iPhone 6, and did not receive any alerts. Why?

@ksoosiah, which phone specifically was it that didn't get the messages? Not all Android devices are supported.

ksoosiah
Good Citizen / Bon Citoyen

@Edison53 

Same here.

 

I'm in Toronto and did not receive the Amber Alert. Although, other members of my household who happen to be on other networks, did receive them. All of us are Android users, so I'm assuming there's an issue with PM LTE network perhaps?  

lheintzman
Model Citizen / Citoyen Modèle

@Psygineer wrote:@

From what I read online you can disable the Amber Alerts on iPhone.... 


Why not just turn off your phone? 

 

If you're really this clueless, why not remove the batteries from your smoke alarm, as well? Or is this all about self-absorbed, personal discomfort?

 

According to Peel Regional Police, the amber alert played a key role in finding this poor little girl. Unfortunately, it was too late, but next time, maybe it won't be. "Non-elective surgery", notwithstanding. 


@denis2 wrote:

I turned the LTE off, is that why I am not receiving Amber Alerts and if so GOOD cause I think they are intrusive and loud


There are ways to get these alerts and information but without hearing the the alert sound.  I know that at one point, Google Now was sending alerts out. In addition many weather apps will also provide these alerts if you choose to have them advise you of these.  They are also available on both tv and radio, although you would have to be listenning/watching at that time to be made aware of them.

Edison53
Good Citizen / Bon Citoyen

Thanks, I will check. (She is in 613 area and her friends got it, so she is wondering why she didn’t. Perhaps this is the explanation.)

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