Question This app is hijacking my phone's audio settings

[Bananaman]

Hi folks,
I'm type 1 diabetic and use an app (Camaps FX) that monitors and displays blood glucose values and controls insulin delivery on a Bluetooth connected pump. When blood glucose drops below 3.1, the app provides a loud and persistent alert via the phone speaker. This feature cannot be disabled and is capable of overriding all sound and volume settings on the phone including Do Not Disturb mode. The alert is not only overly intrusive (waking my partner too) but also redundant because I'm able to receive a much more agreeable vibrating alert on my smartwatch for the same low blood glucose value. I'd like to find some way of preventing this app from hijacking my phone and forcing me and my partner to endure this unpleasant disturbance in the middle of the night. Things I've tried so far that haven't worked include plugging in an old pair of non-working headphones and several volume control apps such as Audio Profiles. This is on a Unihertz Jelly Star phone running Android 13. I'm just your Average Joe with no code writing experience, so ideally I need an app-based solution but if something more technical was the only option, I'd be prepared to have a go. Thanks in advance for your thoughts.

 

[B. Diddy]

Welcome to Android Central! If you go to Settings>Sound>Do Not Disturb, can you see if that app is shown as an exception?

Also, I would send feedback to the app devs about this.

 

[Bananaman]

Welcome to Android Central! If you go to Settings>Sound>Do Not Disturb, can you see if that app is shown as an exception?

Also, I would send feedback to the app devs about this.

Hi and thanks for your reply.
The app is not listed as an exception under Do Not Disturb.
No point in contacting the devs, the accompanying literature for the app states expressly that the "Ultra Low Alert" cannot be turned off. Its intention is to prevent the user from going into a hypoglycemic coma whilst protecting the development company from lawsuits, hence why it's able to override any phone settings. I am not concerned about either of these things because, as mentioned, I have other devices capable of providing alerts in far less unpleasant manners.

 

[SyCoREAPER]

Hi and thanks for your reply.
The app is not listed as an exception under Do Not Disturb.
No point in contacting the devs, the accompanying literature for the app states expressly that the "Ultra Low Alert" cannot be turned off. Its intention is to prevent the user from going into a hypoglycemic coma whilst protecting the development company from lawsuits, hence why it's able to override any phone settings. I am not concerned about either of these things because, as mentioned, I have other devices capable of providing alerts in far less unpleasant manners.

All alerts can be disabled, it depends on your phone and how it's configured. No app, no matter how "important" it is allowed to override the system, it would be counterintuitive to the phones own security of things like saftey alert system.
That said, first, go to App Info for the app. Click on notifications. Next you'll see a screen with a toggle for on/off as well as notification categories. Go into categories. Find the offending alert category and change it to something else. If you don't have any notification sounds that are appropriate to you, you can download one and put it in the notifications folder on the main section (root) of your internal storage.

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Below, be absolutely sure you fully understand the ramifications. I am not responsible for misconfiguration or medical complications, or otherwise as a result. You're an adult and responsible if you proceed below.
If that doesn't work, a non-free option is 'Auto-Notification'. Be aware though of three things;
1) As mentioned, not free.
2) While you can intercept and block selectively only specific notifications, it's all or nothing. You will get ZERO alerts once configured, audible nor visual. Will likely ALSO affect the watch.
3) I've never tested it with a notification that has sounds associated. It may or may not intercept it before a brief initial sound.

 

[Bananaman]

All alerts can be disabled, it depends on your phone and how it's configured. No app, no matter how "important" it is allowed to override the system, it would be counterintuitive to the phones own security of things like saftey alert system.
That said, first, go to App Info for the app. Click on notifications. Next you'll see a screen with a toggle for on/off as well as notification categories. Go into categories. Find the offending alert category and change it to something else. If you don't have any notification sounds that are appropriate to you, you can download one and put it in the notifications folder on the main section (root) of your internal storage.

---

Below, be absolutely sure you fully understand the ramifications. I am not responsible for misconfiguration or medical complications, or otherwise as a result. You're an adult and responsible if you proceed below.
If that doesn't work, a non-free option is 'Auto-Notification'. Be aware though of three things;
1) As mentioned, not free.
2) While you can intercept and block selectively only specific notifications, it's all or nothing. You will get ZERO alerts once configured, audible nor visual. Will likely ALSO affect the watch.
3) I've never tested it with a notification that has sounds associated. It may or may not intercept it before a brief initial sound.

Thanks. I think the issue is that I'd already toggled off notifications for this app and that every time it updates, it's turning them back on! I'll just have to remember to go back into settings and turn them off again after every update.

 

[SyCoREAPER]

Thanks. I think the issue is that I'd already toggled off notifications for this app and that every time it updates, it's turning them back on! I'll just have to remember to go back into settings and turn them off again after every update.

If that's available to you and works, it's a pain but would suggest you keep doing it that way then. Sounds like you're comfortable and know how to do so that way.