North Yorkshire IDAS: 'Government alert likely to put victims at risk'
Some victims could have a secret or emergency phone
North Yorkshire's Independent Domestic Abuse Service says today's Government alert is likely to put victims at increased risk.
The charity is advising people to temporarily disable it or to switch off any secret or emergency phones they might have.
A message will appear on the home screens of mobile phones and tablets from 3pm today and it will be accompanied by a loud siren-like sound or vibration lasting for about 10 seconds.
Oliver Dowden, who is the Government minister in charge of the system, said it is "vital tool to keep the public safe in life-threatening emergencies".
Carmel Offord is from North Yorkshire Independent Domestic Abuse Service and she said: "It will alert somebody to the presence to a hidden or concealed phone, and that's worrying if you're trying to hide that for emergency purposes or if you need to contact people in a hurry. It might be worth considering whether you need to disable those alerts or turn the phone off.
"Many victims and survivors communications are being really closely monitored by an abusive partner or family member. This could look like somebody having all your passwords to your mobile phone, social media, laptops, tablets and it might be that you might not even have a landline particularly people living in rural areas.
"Quite often people will get cheap disposable mobile phones that they can conceal so that if there was an emergency, they would be able to get a call out. It's something that some people would do just so they have that emergency line out or somewhere they can store all their contacts.
"It's likely to put somebody at an increased risk because quite often abusers like to know they've got full control and if they get a sense that they haven't or that that control is threatened then it can make them quite unpredictable. We would encourage anybody who does have concerns to give us a call on our helpline or visit our website."
Find out more on IDAS' website.