Wearable technology such as Apple Watches have been blamed for a recent spike in emergency alerts sent to police in Stearns County by those taking part in snowmobiling, sledding, or tubing.
The Stearns County Sheriff’s Office says it has recently received multiple notifications via cellphone calls that a “crash or fall has occurred.” When deputies were sent to the GPS coordinates provided, they could find no injured parties or anyone in need of assistance.
Further investigation gave police a source of the phantom calls: the Apple Watch.
“There is likely a setting on Apple Watches sending this alert when the party wearing it is participating in winter recreational activities such as snowmobiling, sledding, or tubing, and this activity involves a sudden stop, quick turn, traveling over rough terrain or are involved in jumping a snowmobile, which may be perceived as a fall,” the sheriff’s office said.
“The Stearns County Sheriff’s Office would like to remind everyone to please check the settings if you wear an Apple Watch or related device and are participating in these such activities so that an emergency call is not placed inadvertently.”
The Apple Watch does have a “Fall Detection” capability that gives the wearer the option to notify emergency services when they suffer what is perceived as a “hard fall.”
