• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia
TechThe Mobile Executive

How This Apple Watch Update Could Save Your Life

By
Melanie Lieberman
Melanie Lieberman
and
Travel + Leisure
Travel + Leisure
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Melanie Lieberman
Melanie Lieberman
and
Travel + Leisure
Travel + Leisure
Down Arrow Button Icon
September 8, 2016, 11:27 AM ET
Jeff Williams discusses the Apple Watch Series 2 during an Apple media event in San Francisco
Apple Inc. COO Jeff Williams discusses the Apple Watch Series 2 during an Apple media event in San Francisco, California, U.S. September 7, 2016. REUTERS/Beck Diefenbach - RTX2OJBJBeck Diefenbach — Reuters

Apple’s much-anticipated product launch has finally arrived, and buried in the buzz about the waterproof iPhone 7 is the release date of WatchOS 3 software, available to anyone who owns a first-generation Apple Watch or buys the upcoming Apple Watch 2.

With the WatchOS 3 update, Apple Watches will be instantly equipped with a potentially life-saving SOS feature.

By pressing and holding the side button of your Apple Watch for six seconds, the wearer can initiate a crisis call to 911 or local emergency services across the globe.

Watch users will be placed on a live call with an emergency service, and, where available, their location will be automatically sent to the dispatcher. After the call concludes, a message containing a map to their location will be sent to anyone on the emergency contacts list.

Get Data Sheet, Fortune’s technology newsletter.

Any crucial medical information you opt to share in advance—allergies, age, blood type—will be displayed as part of a new Medical ID also enabled with WatchOS 3.

Notifications about location change will continue to be sent, and the Apple Watch (AAPL) will continue to present health information for medical personnel, until the emergency is resolved.

For more: All the News You Need to Know From Apple’s Big Event

You wouldn’t use this feature as often as you could be using Bluetooth headphones, and hopefully you’ll never use the SOS program at all. But if you’re traveling anywhere in the world, it’s the thing that may save your life in an emergency.

This story was originally published on TravelandLeisure.com.

About the Authors
By Melanie Lieberman
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
By Travel + Leisure
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Tech

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • Future 50
  • World’s Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
Sections
  • Finance
  • Leadership
  • Success
  • Tech
  • Asia
  • Europe
  • Environment
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Health
  • Retail
  • Lifestyle
  • Politics
  • Newsletters
  • Magazine
  • Features
  • Commentary
  • Mpw
  • CEO Initiative
  • Conferences
  • Personal Finance
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
About Us
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.


Most Popular

placeholder alt text
North America
'I meant what I said in Davos': Carney says he really is planning a Canada split with the U.S. along with 12 new trade deals
By Rob Gillies and The Associated PressJanuary 28, 2026
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
C-Suite
Fortune 500 CEOs are no longer giving employees an A for effort. Now they want proof of impact
By Claire ZillmanJanuary 28, 2026
2 days ago
placeholder alt text
Politics
The American taxpayer spent nearly half a billion dollars deploying federal troops to U.S. cities in 2025, CBO finds
By Nick LichtenbergJanuary 28, 2026
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
Success
Every U.S. Olympian is going home with $200,000, whether they medal or not, thanks to a billionaire's $100 million gift
By Jacqueline MunisJanuary 28, 2026
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
C-Suite
Jeff Bezos capped his Amazon salary at $80,000: ‘How could I possibly need more incentive?’
By Sydney LakeJanuary 28, 2026
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
Real Estate
Ryan Serhant thinks the American Dream was just a 'slogan created by banks,' but it was really about FDR, the Great Depression, and an economic crisis
By Sydney Lake and Nick LichtenbergJanuary 26, 2026
3 days ago

Latest in Tech

ICE
CybersecurityMilitary
Only 4 democracies have created paramilitary police squads since 1960—if you include ICE
By Erica De Bruin and The ConversationJanuary 29, 2026
1 hour ago
Claude 4 illustration
AIAnthropic
Top engineers at Anthropic, OpenAI say AI now writes 100% of their code—with big implications for the future of software development jobs
By Beatrice NolanJanuary 29, 2026
4 hours ago
TikTok influencer Khaby Lame sits and talks.
AISocial Media
Getting deported by Trump can’t stop top influencer Khaby Lame from notching a $975 million deal—including the rights to his AI avatar
By Jake AngeloJanuary 29, 2026
4 hours ago
NewslettersEye on AI
AI has made hacking cheap. That changes everything for business
By Sharon GoldmanJanuary 29, 2026
5 hours ago
Microsoft Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Satya Nadella (L), speaks with OpenAI Chief Executive Officer Sam Altman, who joined by video during the Microsoft Build 2025, conference in Seattle, Washington on May 19, 2025.
Big TechOpenAI
Microsoft’s $440 billion wipeout, and investors angry about OpenAI’s debt, explained
By Eva RoytburgJanuary 29, 2026
5 hours ago
AILetter from London
Struggling to remain relevant during the AI watercooler chat? Talk about your latest ‘new collar’ hire 
By Kamal AhmedJanuary 29, 2026
7 hours ago