“In Case of Emergency” Cell Phone Campaign Encounters Hoax

Posted by Alex Grahmann Categories: Smartphones

What started as a well-intentioned campaign has turned a bit ugly for the East Anglian Ambulance NHS Trust.  The Trust, which provides ambulance service in parts of the UK, decided to encourage cell phone users to add the acronym “ICE” as a caller name connected to the number of a loved one in their stored phone books.  This would allow emergency workers to quickly find and call the number in the event of an emergency for the cell owner. 

While this sounded like a great and simple plan, it turns out that shortly after the system gained widespread interest, it was muddied by the unfortunate meddling of hoaxers.  The pranksters sent out e-mails falsely accusing the system of being a cell phone virus that saps pay-as-you-go minutes and copies address books.  While it should be quite obvious to most people that a simple addition to their address list can’t be a virus by itself, the malicious e-mails don’t help the well-meaning safety campaign.

Read More | ICE Hoax Information from East Anglian Ambulance