A mysterious message sent to mobile phones by BG-ALERT scared many Bulgarians. Some people report a loud alarm-like startling sound when receiving it.
For most users, a message comes with the text: “Attention, danger!”, and for some there is a signal from the president. The notice also says “test test”, which means the system is being tested.
In some neighborhoods of Sofia, people came out of their homes in panic. On social networks, dozens of users share that they received the message in question and were scared.
Former Minister of e-Government Bozhidar Bojanov reassured people by writing on Facebook that there is no danger.
“It’s okay, there’s no danger, it’s just a test message. It is high time to have such a system which is very useful in disasters and it is very good that the Ministry of Interior is implementing it. MoI needs to improve the testing process (especially in a production environment). “test test” is not a good message,” wrote Bojanov.
BG-ALERT is a system that notifies about dangers by telephone. On “This Morning” in September, Eng. Nikolay Nikolov, a former longtime director of the fire department and adviser to the minister of interior affairs, said the system would be ready by the end of the year.
“Bulgaria has a National Disaster Risk Reduction Program. However, it needs very serious funding. It is easiest for the people from the Ministry of Internal Affairs to press the button and warn. On-site monitoring is the most difficult. Such systems are being built, but there is no country that can boast of a 100% built system,” said Engineer Nikolov.
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