What happens if someone finds your phone? What happens if they also find you next to your phone and you’re unable to communicate?

Many Android phones have a feature called ICE, which stands for In Case of Emergency.

You’ll find the ICE entry at the top of the Contacts list on your phone, in the Contacts or People app. It looks similar to what’s shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1. The ICE entry in the phone’s address book.

Touch the ICE entry to see emergency contact information. There are three slots for contacts and three slots for notes.

So, for example, the ICE contacts can be your emergency contact relative, spouse, a doctor, or your mistress.

The three note fields can list some good-to-know facts for public safety officials or anyone giving you assistance. Often those folks are trained to look for cell phones specifically with this type of information.

Figure 2 shows the information from my phone:

Figure 2. The ICE screen on my phone.

To set this information, follow these steps:

1. Open the Contacts or People app.

2. Choose the ICE entry. It’s found at the top of the list.

3. To edit everything, touch the Menu soft button and choose the Edit command button.

4. Type your name into Assign Owner text field.

5. Into the Emergency Contacts fields, choose up to three contacts. Just touch the field and then browse the address book to choose someone.

6. Into the Edit Notes field type text that would be handy for a public safety official to know, such as your medications, whether your diabetic, allergies, and so on.

7. Touch the Save button to save the ICE information.

You can review your ICE settings at any time by choosing that item. To make modifications, choose the Edit command just as you did in Step 3.

Keep in mind that though this information can only be accessed if your phone doesn’t have a pattern, PIN, or password form of screen lock. That’s a trade off you’ll have to make if you want someone else to use your phone to get you help when you cannot do it for yourself.