People living in the border region are being advised that their mobile phones may receive a notification when the UK government tests its emergency alert system on Sunday.
Recipients will hear a loud, siren-like sound and their phone will make a distinct vibration.
The alert can also override a person's own settings on their mobile phone such a 'silent’ or ‘do not disturb’.
A message will appear on the home screen of the phone until it is acknowledged.
Mobile phone customers on mobile phone networks based south of the border will not receive the message.
However, mobile phone customers near the border area who roam onto a UK mobile phone network will receive the alert on Sunday at 3pm.
Mobile phones, tablets and other devices do not have to be connected to mobile data or Wi-Fi to receive the alert.
The UK Emergency Alerts System, which is operational across Britain and Northern Ireland, was launched in March 2023 and was previously tested in April 2023.
The system enables the UK government to send out an ‘alert’ message in the event of an emergency when lives are endangered, such as extreme storms, severe flooding and wildfires.
Such emergency alerts look and sound very different to other types of messages and include a link to the UK government website for more information.
The system has been used to issue real warnings on five previous occasions, including during Storm Éowyn in January to warn people in Northern Ireland and Scotland about the severe weather conditions.
The Department of Communications here has said: "Any texts sent by the UK Emergency Alerts system in Northern Ireland may be received by some people in border counties in Ireland, even if some of those recipients normally subscribe to a mobile phone service in Ireland".
However, those who receive the test alert during the drill on Sunday afternoon do not need to take any action as there is no cause for concern.
