You can’t miss The sound – piercing, harmless sound – even if your phone is set to vibrate. Normally this recurring rant would appear as an amber alert, but this morning it was accompanied by a push notification about an alleged criminal on the loose in New York City. It is strange that the message that appeared on dozens of smartphone screens did not use the phrase Someone interesting or suspect. Instead, the alarming alert sounded like something out of a Philip K. Dick novel:
Wanted to film the Brooklyn Subway: Frank James, black male, 62 years old. Any information can be directed to NYPD TIPS at 800-577-TIPS (8477). More information and photo: NYC.gov/notifynyc
The alert had a troubling – and perhaps unprecedented – quality: Given that the NYPD was quick to rule out terrorism after yesterday’s attack, and that authorities weren’t looking for any potential accomplices, what was behind this sudden escalation?
New Yorkers immediately posted screenshots of the message that hijacked their phones. “My phone made a terrifying noise and then commanded me to begin an attentive search for the subway shooter, so you have to excuse me,” Journalist Jordan Hoffman sarcastic on twitter. Some social media users wrote that they fear that the payment was only sent to people close to the target, and that they are in imminent danger.
Juliette Kayem, the former assistant secretary of Homeland Security under President Barack Obama, described the digital feature as a “reverse 911” mechanism, an emergency management tool that allows authorities to call citizens.
The New York Alert website says the system’s goal is to “provide critical life-saving updates,” and that it pushes notifications for events including severe weather, public health warnings, and missing children. The site does not mention stalking. The tool’s use of this alert rises “to the level of a first of its kind,” Chaim said. “If you kind of cross that bridge, as New York did—and do it in a non-kids case, a non-Amber case—what are their standards? And that’s worth asking. Because you can’t do that every time there’s been a shooting.”
The call to the tip line led to a random beat interrupted by a male baritone voice who said, “All customers are busy. Please keep waiting.” Users who tried to click to access the government website noticed that it immediately crashed. (A NYPD spokesperson was unable to answer my questions about the geographic scope of the immediate alert, and deferred all comments to an upcoming press conference.)
Many New Yorkers have been on standby for more than 24 hours. During most of yesterday, police helicopters hovered over swathes of south Brooklyn, searching for James, who is accused of an attack on the 36th Street subway station that wounded at least 23 people. Last night’s rush hour transportation was rife with closures and delays across key parts of the public transportation system. Travelers who did not feel safe riding in carriages chose to use taxis and Ubers, even as waiting times increased and prices increased. Major traffic arteries, including the Bowery in Manhattan and Flatbush Street in Brooklyn, were more chaotic and clogged than usual.
Unexpectedly, posting a loud and invasive alert may be part of the authorities’ move to restore a sense of order. “Sometimes communities are down, and the show of strength, the show of activity, is actually helping people get back to normal,” Kim said. “We’re coming up for the Boston Marathon this weekend, and it’s obviously the anniversary of the bombing. For years there’s been a distribution of resources [for the marathon]. Was it a “security theatre”? probably. Would you have prevented two men from dropping the bags and letting them explode? Mostly not. But it helped people feel like they could go ahead and get back into the marathon.”
Mayor Eric Adams, the former New York City transit police officer who has run through on his promise to increase public safety, appears focused on reassuring the public. He told MSNBC morning atmosphere It “will not leave any legal technology off the table when it comes to keeping New Yorkers safe.”
Around 2 p.m., about four hours after the alarm went off, the New York Police said they arrested James in Manhattan’s East Village, about nine miles from the site of yesterday’s attack. Whether or not this morning’s push alert contributed meaningfully to the arrest, the questions it raised won’t go away.
“I think what I’ve discovered is that there is a discrepancy between the intended use of the 911’s reverse and its use today,” Chaim said. Is this a justified contradiction? Perhaps because of the nature of the attack, but it certainly shouldn’t set a precedent. This is something to discuss.”
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