Software glitch prevented government warning from reaching three million customers

A typographical error is at fault in the Welsh translation of the emergency alert. Photo: Matthew Horwood/Getty Images

In addition to the outages on the Three network, many people reported that they received the alert a minute early at 2:59 pm, while others said it arrived more than late. than 10 minutes.

The Cabinet of Ministers also accused a technical error of a technical error. a spelling error in the translation of the Welsh alert.

A government spokesman said: “We have effectively completed testing of the UK-wide emergency alert system, the largest public relations effort in the UK. This has never happened.

“We are working with mobile network operators to analyze the results and any lessons learned.”

Kester Mann, an analyst at CCS Insight, said the incident was “not [Three's] high point, but that's the whole point of the trial run.”

Three is currently in talks with larger rival Vodafone about a possible merger. Robert Finnegan, chief executive of Three, said the company's investment in its network would be unsustainable unless a deal was struck.

The two networks have been in talks for months, but still haven't reached an agreement due to for the valuation controversy, the departure of Vodafone's CEO in December, and the national security concerns surrounding Three's Hong Kong owner C.K. Hutchison.