Learn how to set up your iPhone’s emergency medical data

A video has been circulating on WhatsApp in which a man introduces himself as a former employee of SAMU (Mobile Emergency Care Service) and explains how to fill in the data in the Emergency function on the iPhone. It shows that these cell phones have a function that allows you to enter information such as blood type, allergies and the phone number of a person nearby to contact in case of an emergency.

As the virtual world is full of scams, some followers of awesome.club contacted our team to verify to what extent this video is true and if it is really worth filling out this medical form. Is there no risk of data falling into the hands of scammers? Next, we share our findings.

First of all, there is no risk in entering personal data in the medical record. Apple (manufacturer of the iPhone), on its website, explains that the function exists for rescuers to access medical information about the owner of the device, even if the screen is locked.

Marcelo Lau, an MBA professor at the Faculdade de Informática e Administração Paulista (FIAP) and director of the digital security company Data Security, explains that the most important thing is to fill in the medical file only with the data that are, in fact, relevant in the case of a emergency, such as blood type and indication of a medication for continuous use, in addition to the contact of a person in case of emergency.

“To date, I am unaware of the use of this type of information by third parties for the potential application of scams, as the data is accessed without the need for the owner of the cell phone to unlock it”, he says.

Click on the ‘Health’ app (it has a heart-shaped icon) A ‘Medical Record’ screen will appear. Click on ‘Create medical record’ Fill in your data. On the unlock screen (the one where you are asked to enter the device owner’s password), the word ’emergency’ will appear in the left corner of the screen. Clicking this icon will bring up the emergency phone call screen — with the word “Emergency” written in red in various languages ​​at the top of the screen. The term ‘Medical Record’ will appear in the lower left corner, in red — below. Just click on it to access this data.

We talked to a SAMU rescuer. He explained to us that the protocol of care in emergency cases (standard guidelines for the work of rescue teams) is focused, above all, on checking the victim’s vital signs and keeping him stable.

Under these conditions, according to him, it is unlikely that the rescuer wants to check the cell phone to know, for example, whether or not the person has undergone surgery or even what their blood type is. Transfusions, in most cases, are done only after arrival at the hospital.

In any case, the data can be useful in a situation where, for example, the person is conscious, but, due to a trauma, has difficulty informing the teams about their health, in which case they can use cell phone data. Or even in a situation where a friend or relative needs to inform this data to the rescue teams.

Our editor, for example, has already filled out the medical file with his data. And you, do you intend to do the same? Tell us!