Google Testing Hands-Free Emergency SOS On Phones: Here's How It Will Work

Google is reportedly developing a voice-activated Emergency SOS feature for Android phones. Currently, Emergency SOS is activated by pressing the power button five times. The new feature would allow users to initiate an alert without physically interacting with the device. This feature is currently in development and not yet available to users.

According to the source code of Google's Personal Safety app, the feature might be activated by saying "Help" three times in succession. Once activated, the app would initiate location tracking, start recording video, and initiate a call. These actions would occur simultaneously. The code also hints at a hands-free method to stop the alert, with the user being able to say "cancel" to dismiss it or "yes" to proceed.

The feature would require confirmation from the user. This could be done through voice commands. Users would say "cancel" to end the alert and "yes" to allow it to proceed. The reports differ on who will be contacted. Android Authority suggests that the feature will send an SOS and directly contact first responders. Another outlet speculates that the feature might initially be available only on Pixels, with other Android devices following, but this information is speculative.

The Personal Safety app is not exclusive to Google's Pixel phones. It is available on other Android devices from various manufacturers. Samsung, for instance, already has its own SOS system, so the new feature might not apply to its devices. The APK teardown, which involves examining the code of apps before their release, has revealed this potential feature. However, the final form of the feature could change or it might be abandoned altogether.