iOS 18 Gains Emergency SOS Live Video Support - MacRumorsOpen MenuShow RoundupsShow Forums menuVisit ForumsOpen Sidebar
Skip to Content

iOS 18 Gains Emergency SOS Live Video Support

iOS 18 is giving iPhone users who find themselves in an emergency situation a way to provide more information and context to emergency responders with an update to Emergency SOS.

emergency sos
Emergency SOS now supports live video, which means once the SOS feature is activated, streaming video and recorded media can be sent to emergency personnel. Emergency dispatchers can send a request for a user to share either live video or a video from the camera roll, which Apple says should make it easier and faster to get help.

Video is sent over a secure connection to the emergency dispatcher. The option could allow those in emergency situations to send key information for location purposes, to assess injury or risk, or to be used as evidence at a later date.

Emergency SOS is a feature on the iPhone and Apple Watch that automatically calls the local emergency number and shares location information with emergency services. It is the backbone of the Crash Detection, Fall Detection, and Emergency SOS via satellite features.

Related Forums: iOS 18, iPadOS 18

Popular Stories

iOS 27 on iPhone 17 1

iOS 27 Will Add These New Features to Your iPhone

Saturday May 2, 2026 8:43 am PDT by
Apple is expected to unveil iOS 27 during its WWDC 2026 keynote on June 8, and there are already many rumored features and changes for iPhones. The first developer beta of iOS 27 will likely be available immediately following the keynote, and a public beta typically follows in July. Following beta testing, the software update should be released to all users with a compatible iPhone in...
Apple Event Logo

Apple Just Released a New Accessory

Monday May 4, 2026 8:13 am PDT by
Apple today released a new Pride Edition Sport Loop for the Apple Watch. The band features a rainbow design with 11 colors of woven nylon yarns. The new Pride Edition Sport Loop is available to order now on Apple.com and in the Apple Store app in 40mm, 42mm, and 46mm sizes, and it will be available at Apple Store locations starting later this week. In the U.S., the band costs $49. There...
Apple MacBook Pro M4 hero

Why You Might Want to Wait to Buy a MacBook Pro

Friday May 1, 2026 3:43 pm PDT by
Apple refreshed the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro with M5 Pro and M5 Max models in March 2026, but depending on your needs and interests, you might want to skip this generation because there's something better in the works. The M5 Pro and M5 Max MacBook Pro models have faster chips, but the same design that Apple has used since 2021. An updated design with new display technology and faster ...

Top Rated Comments

Apple_Robert Avatar
25 months ago
I like this idea and hope I never need to use such a feature.
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
25 months ago
I like the slow, deliberate roll out for this, to try and ensure it doesn’t overload and seize the system. It will continually get better in stages. I approve.
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
25 months ago
Apple constantly adding potentially life saving features. Hope not to use them. But this can only be a good thing. We do not need to overwhelm emergencies services with things that don’t work properly.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
25 months ago

Wait, you'll be able to send video but RCS over SOS Sat is still too bloated to work over it?
You're confusing two very different scenarios.

Apple has said that RCS is too inefficient for general-use texting (maybe thousands or hundreds of thousands of messages a day, maybe even more?). This is not incompatible with allowing video for the much more limited and rare emergency/SOS scenarios (probably no more than a handful or a few dozen SOS calls/day?).

Apple's implementation so far is entirely logical and reasonable.

Perhaps, in the future, as the capacity of Globalstar's satellite network continues to increase, Apple will eventually enable video for general use. For now though, capacity is limited, and it makes sense to limit video to only emergency use.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
25 months ago

Apple constantly adding potentially life saving features. Hope not to use them. But this can only be a good thing. We do not need to overwhelm emergencies services with things that don’t work properly.
It’s in their interest to ensure their customers live :D
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
NightFox Avatar
25 months ago

Wondering if it shows the mic and camera light at the top of the screen? Otherwise big brother may be watching. :rolleyes:
IF you really do think that Apple would build some sort of surveillance capability into the iPhone, why do you think they would need to ‘sneak it in’ along with another function like this? They could bake it in the the OS anytime. And I’d like to think they’d have the foresight and technological competence to make sure the privacy warning indicators didn’t come on when ‘big brother was watching’.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Related Apple News: Iphone | Buyers Guide | Enable Smoother 120hz Browsing In Safari | Culture | Ios 26 3 Features