How to set up Emergency SOS and Medical ID on your phone (iPhone and Android)

After an accident, a sudden illness or in a dangerous situation there is often no time or chance to unlock your phone and dial a number. The emergency features on iPhone and Android phones let you call emergency services with a few button presses, send your location to your loved ones after the call, and let people on the scene see your details from the lock screen.

You only need to set these up once, at a calm moment. Below we first set up Medical ID and Emergency SOS on iPhone, then emergency information and Emergency SOS on Android, and finally check that your details appear on the lock screen. You decide which health details to enter; this guide only shows where the settings are.

1. iPhone: Create a Medical ID in the Health app Open the <strong>Health</strong> app on your iPhone. Tap your picture in the upper corner, then tap <strong>Medical ID</strong>. If this is your first time, tap <strong>Get Started</strong>; if you created one before, tap <strong>Edit</strong>, then enter the details you want to appear on the lock screen. You can also reach this page quickly by touching and holding the Health app icon on the Home Screen and choosing Medical ID.
2. iPhone: Add emergency contacts On the same editing page, go down to <strong>Emergency Contacts</strong> and tap <strong>Add Emergency Contact</strong>. Choose a person from your contacts and set your relationship; add another person if you need to. These people appear in your Medical ID on the lock screen and also receive the message your iPhone sends after a call made with Emergency SOS.
3. iPhone: Turn on Show When Locked Scroll to the bottom of the editing page and turn on <strong>Show When Locked</strong>. This lets someone on the scene see your Medical ID even while your phone is locked. The <strong>Emergency Call</strong> option below it is for sharing your details automatically during an emergency call; according to Apple this currently works only in the U.S. and Canada. When you are done, tap <strong>Done</strong>.
4. iPhone: Review your Emergency SOS settings Go to <strong>Settings > Emergency SOS</strong>. With <strong>Call with Hold and Release</strong> on, holding and releasing the side button and either volume button starts a countdown to call emergency services. If you turn on <strong>Call with 5 Presses</strong>, rapidly pressing the side button five times does the same. The emergency contacts option on the same page takes you to the Health app.
5. iPhone: Learn how Emergency SOS works In an emergency, press and hold the side button and either volume button at the same time; the sliders appear and the Emergency SOS countdown starts. Keep holding until the countdown ends, then release, and iPhone plays a warning sound and calls emergency services. After the call ends, iPhone alerts your emergency contacts with a text message unless you cancel, sends your location if available, and for a while sends updates when your location changes. To dial by hand from a locked phone, tap <strong>Emergency</strong> on the passcode screen and dial 112 (or your local number).
6. Android: Add emergency information to the Safety app Open the <strong>Safety</strong> app on your phone (it is called Personal Safety in the Play Store and in Settings) and sign in to your Google Account. Tap <strong>Your info</strong>. Open <strong>Medical information</strong> and tap the items you want to fill in, such as blood type, allergies or medications. Then use <strong>Emergency contacts > Add contact</strong> to pick people from your contacts. On phones from manufacturers such as Samsung or Xiaomi these menus may have different names and places; if you cannot find them, type "emergency" in the Settings search box.
7. Android: Show your information on the lock screen In the Safety app, go to <strong>Emergency info access</strong> and tap <strong>Show when locked</strong>. While this is on, anyone who picks up your phone can see your emergency information and lock screen message without unlocking it. If there is something you do not want to share, simply leave it off the list or turn the setting off in the same place.
8. Android: Set up Emergency SOS Open the <strong>Settings</strong> app and tap <strong>Safety & emergency > Emergency SOS</strong>. Tap <strong>Start setup</strong> at the bottom right; at the number step, check that 112 is selected for Türkiye, or fix it with <strong>Change number</strong>. At the location sharing step, use <strong>Add contact</strong> to choose who should be told, and give location permission <strong>While using the app</strong>. At the last step, choose either <strong>Use touch & hold to start actions</strong> (with confirmation) or <strong>Start actions immediately after countdown</strong> (automatic), then tap <strong>Done</strong>.
9. Android: Learn how to start Emergency SOS In an emergency, press your phone's power button 5 times or more. Depending on your setting, touch and hold inside the red circle for 3 seconds or wait for the automatic countdown to start the call. Once the call starts, location sharing and video recording also begin if you set them up. Emergency SOS does not work in airplane mode or while Battery Saver is on, and your location only reaches your contacts if you have an internet connection.
10. Check that your details show on the lock screen Lock your phone and try it the way someone on the scene would; this check does not place a call. On iPhone, swipe up on the lock screen (on models with a Home button, press it), tap <strong>Emergency</strong> on the passcode screen, then <strong>Medical ID</strong>. On Android, swipe up on the lock screen, tap <strong>Emergency</strong>, then <strong>View emergency info</strong>. If your details do not appear, go back to the Show When Locked setting.

⚠ This guide is general information. Yudum cannot be held responsible for the outcome of following it; for official procedures always rely on the institution's own statement. Steps and fees change over time.

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