Government tests emergency alert system, here’s what it means

Last month, several users in India received a message with a loud beep on their phones. The message was an emergency alert test. Today, we at TOI-GadgetsNow received another test alert titled “Required monthly test”.

What the alert text said

The message reads, “This is a test alert message, please ignore”. If you also received such a message and wondered what it was, then it is an emergency alert system being tested by the government with telecom service providers.

The alert appears as a popup window and it flashes on users’ mobile phones irrespective of the app open on the device.