Apple’s Crash Detection alert lead to an extended helicopter search in B.C.

Apple’s Crash Detection feature making falls emergency calls isn’t something new.

Following the feature falsely detecting crashes when the wearer is riding a roller coaster, it’s was found that the feature also gives false positives when the user is enjoying winter sports like skiing. Now, as reported by The Globe and Mail, via iPhoneinCanada, instances of false alarms rung by the feature have also been reported in Canada.

According to the publication, there were at least four instances in the week of December 15th.

For those unaware, Apple introduced Crash Detection alongside the iPhone 14 series at its latest fall hardware event. The feature is only available with the iPhone 14 series, the Apple Watch Ultra, Apple Watch Series 8 and Apple Watch SE (2022) and alerts nearby authorities when it detects that you’ve been in a crash.

One of the instances took place on December 11th, wherein and iPhone stashed in the glovebox of a snowmobile around British Columbia’s backcountry alerted authorities, and a wide search involving the RCMP, and an extended helicopter flight ensued. It is estimated that the search cost Canadian tax payer’s roughly $10,000.

“The following day, Golden and District Search and Rescue received two more emergency calls related to Apple Inc.’s new crash detection system,” reads The Globe and Mail’s report. “A similar thing happened on Saturday near Rossland, B.C., where police believe a skier’s phone mistakenly called for help.”

Apple has released a new iOS 16.1.2 update, which includes “Crash Detection optimizations.” It’s currently unknown how much the update helps in preventing false positives.

Crash Detection is on by default. You can turn off alerts and automatic emergency calls from Apple after a severe car crash in Settings > Emergency SOS, then turn off Call After Severe Crash.

Source: The Globe and Mail, via: iPhoneinCanada