uniladtech homepage
  • News
    • Tech News
    • AI
  • Gadgets
    • Apple
    • iPhone
  • Gaming
    • Playstation
    • Xbox
  • Science
    • News
    • Space
  • Streaming
    • Netflix
  • Vehicles
    • Car News
  • Social Media
    • WhatsApp
    • YouTube
  • Advertise
  • Terms
  • Privacy & Cookies
  • LADbible Group
  • LADbible
  • UNILAD
  • SPORTbible
  • GAMINGbible
  • Tyla
  • FOODbible
  • License Our Content
  • About Us & Contact
  • Jobs
  • Latest
  • Archive
  • Topics A-Z
  • Authors
Facebook
Instagram
X
TikTok
Snapchat
WhatsApp
Submit Your Content
Reason why you should never say 108 to Siri

Home> Apple

Published 16:32 21 May 2024 GMT+1

Reason why you should never say 108 to Siri

Don't risk it - it could land you in serious trouble.

Rebekah Jordan

Rebekah Jordan

google discoverFollow us on Google Discover
Featured Image Credit: d3sign / FG Trade / Getty
Apple
Social Media
iPhone

Advert

Advert

Advert

Voice assistants like Amazon's Alexa and Apple's Siri help us out with a lot of day-to-day queries - saving us the need to type anything to search.

Since Siri's introduction in 2011, it has encountered a fair share of odd requests because quite frankly we are a curious but weird species.

But there's one specific instruction that should be avoided.

Back in 2017, a trending but foolish social media prank encouraged Apple users people to say '108' to their Siri, with one writing: 'I just found out you can 3 way FaceTime now you just say '108' to Siri and then you can call two people.'

Advert

And it seems that some took the bait.

But, as it turns out, 108 is India's emergency service and saying it will prompt the assistant to call the local emergency services depending on where you are.

d3sign / Getty
d3sign / Getty

So, you'll be transferred to the number 999 in the case of the UK or 911 for the US.

The trend stirred enough problems for the emergency services to be overrun with unnecessary calls that celebrities like actor Devon Sawa urged people not to take part in the prank.

'Whatever you do, do NOT tell Siri '108,'' the Final Destination and Chucky star wrote on Twitter in 2018 before being rebranded as X.

Despite the warnings, Sawa's tweet had the opposite effect and caused some followers to try the Siri hack for themselves.

Although the phone assistant gives users a five-second time span to cancel or make the emergency call, it didn't stop a wave of panic among curious iPhone users.

FG Trade / Getty
FG Trade / Getty

Prank calls to emergency services not only waste valuable resources but also divert attention from real emergencies.

Around 240 million calls are made to 911 in the United States each year and doing such prank calls can be considered a punishable crime.

'If 9-1-1 operators are trying to answer these calls, that means that a real emergency call might not be answered as quickly as it needs to be answered,' a Facebook post for the police department in Lewistown in the US read.

So, remember that not all pranks are that funny - and this one could land you in some serious trouble.

Choose your content:

a day ago
2 days ago
8 days ago
  • Bloomberg / Contributor via Getty
    a day ago

    Apple's next iOS update could come with an unwelcome new iPhone feature

    Many iPhone owners have already expressed their frustration

    Apple
  • Bloomberg / Contributor via Getty
    2 days ago

    'Fantastic' motion sickness feature hiding in your iPhone is a total gamechanger

    It's worth a try if you're prone to motion sickness

    Apple
  • Disney
    8 days ago

    Apple TV drops trailer for highly anticipated new thriller starring controversial Marvel star

    Tatiana Maslany's future with the Avengers remains in doubt

    Streaming
  • NurPhoto / Contributor via Getty
    8 days ago

    FBI's 'stop texting' warning triggers Apple to make groundbreaking change to messages

    It could finally fix a long-standing messaging problem

    Apple
  • Apple employee shares 'mind-blowing' reason why users should never close their iPhone apps
  • Reason why you should never say this one word to your AI chatbot
  • Ex-Apple employee shares one place you should never take your iPhone and it's not for the reason you think
  • iPhone user baffled by mystery card sat in Apple wallet for years that they should never have had