Google has confirmed that its Android Earthquake Alerts system partially failed during the deadly earthquake that struck Turkey in February 2023. The system, which uses sensors in Android phones to detect early signs of earthquakes, is designed to send alerts to users moments before major quakes hit. During the 7.8 magnitude quake that killed over 55,000 people and injured more than 100,000, the system sent the highest-level “Take Action” alerts to only 469 people.
These alerts are meant to wake users and prompt them to seek safety immediately. Google estimates that the system could have potentially alerted up to 10 million people within 98 miles of the epicenter. Instead, around 500,000 users received the lower-level “Be Aware” warning, which is intended for light shaking and does not override a device’s Do Not Disturb setting.
The company attributes the failure to limitations in the detection algorithms. The system initially estimated the shaking between 4.5 and 4.9 on the moment magnitude scale, far below the actual 7.8 magnitude.
Earthquake alerts malfunctioned in Turkey
Researchers from Google have published findings about the system’s performance, acknowledging the challenges in tuning algorithms for large magnitude events. They ran a simulation of the first quake with revised algorithms, which generated 10 million “Take Action” alerts and 67 million “Be Aware” alerts. Some experts have expressed frustration over the delay in releasing this information.
“People died, and we didn’t see the performance of this warning in the way we would like,” said Elizabeth Reddy, assistant professor at Colorado School of Mines. Google maintains that the Android Earthquake Alerts system, now available in 98 countries, is meant to supplement rather than replace national warning systems. However, scientists worry that some countries may rely too heavily on this technology.
“I think being very transparent about how well it works is absolutely critical,” said Harold Tobin, director of the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network. Google has been asked about the system’s performance during the 2025 earthquake in Myanmar but has not yet responded.
