Automatic Crash Detection and Reporting by iPhone in New Zealand
"It's Nothing Serious," but Police Dispatched and Arrest Made
Similar Case Occurred Domestically Last Month
Last month, a man in his 30s who was caught driving under the influence in South Korea was reported to the police thanks to the iPhone's automatic crash detection feature, and a similar incident occurred in New Zealand.
According to a report by New Zealand local media STUFF on the 9th (local time), a 46-year-old male driver was arrested for drunk driving due to his iPhone.
The man was driving on Andersons Bay Road in Dunedin, New Zealand, when he crashed into a tree, and the iPhone 14, which detected the collision, automatically called the local emergency number 111.
The man told 111, "It's nothing serious. I'm okay," but the responders, suspecting intoxication after hearing his voice, dispatched police to the scene.
The driver resisted the police who arrived, refusing to take a blood alcohol test, and after a struggle, he was arrested.
Automatic Crash Detection Feature from iPhone 14... Automatic Call to Emergency Medical Center
The automatic crash detection feature, introduced with the iPhone 14, displays a warning on the iPhone and Apple Watch when the user experiences a strong impact. If the user does not respond to the warning alarms, which sound twice for 10 seconds each, the device automatically calls the emergency reporting center.
However, it is known that false alarms from this crash detection feature occur frequently, becoming a headache for emergency call centers.
Earlier, on the 7th, the New York Times (NYT) reported that the iPhone 14's crash detection feature was malfunctioning at amusement parks and ski resorts, causing a surge in false emergency calls.
In response, an amusement park in the United States installed signs requesting iPhone users to disable the crash detection feature before riding attractions.
Additionally, Japan's Yomiuri Shimbun reported that out of 919 emergency calls received by the Nagano Prefecture Kita Alps Nagano Fire Department from December 16 to January 23 last year, about 100 were due to malfunctions of the iPhone's crash detection feature.
Similar Incident Occurred Domestically... Man in His 30s Hits Traffic Light
A similar incident occurred domestically on the 18th of last month.
At that time, a man in his 30s, who was driving under the influence for about 40 km from Seoul to Incheon, crashed into a traffic light, and the iPhone automatically reported to 119, revealing the drunk driving. The man's blood alcohol concentration at the time was above 0.08%, the level for license cancellation.
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