How to get rid of unwanted alarm on Galaxy S9

We usually use alarms to help us get up or remind us to do something useful in a certain time of day. In a case mentioned below, a user says that her Galaxy S9 keeps sounding an alarm during the same time every day without her approval and the problem persists even after a factory reset. If you have a similar situation, learn how to resolve it below.

Problem: Galaxy S9 has unwanted alarm set up

My Samsung s9 has somehow gotten an alarm on it that started going off at 12:02 a.m. each night.  It now goes off at 11:02 p.m. since we are on Daylight Savings Time. I have had phone replaced under warranty in an effort to solve the alarm problem.  The phone issue has been explored at the Verizon Store in Mineral, VA & at the Verizon Store in Central Park, Fredericksburg, VA. The Fredericksburg Verizon store suggested I take phone to If It is Broke, We fix It.  There will be a charge if I do that and I do not feel I should have to spend money to fix phone that I bought from VErison Store. The alarm is still alive and well and I am most disgusted with this phone. Even if I turn the volume totally down, the alarm still goes off.  I would appreciate any help you may be able to offer. I have deleted apps, phone has been reset to factory settings to no avail. The model # is SM-G960U, Serial # R38K20DHK9H, IMEI 3548 2309 9102 151, Hardware version REV1.1. I only have a cell phone; so it is not my choice to turn the phone off since I have an 88 year old Mom who still lives alone and I need to be available for her.

Solution: Alarms are not automatically created by a system. It’s either that you created this alarm before, or that something triggers it. To fix this problem, follow our suggestions below.

Check the Clock app

The default alarm feature on the Galayx S9 can be found in the Clock app. To check if there’s any created alarm:

1. Open Clock app.
2. Tap Alarm tab.
3. Check the list of alarms you’ve created and delete or turn off anything you don’t want.

Check other similar clock apps

If you’re using third party clock apps, be sure delete the alarms you may have forgotten to turn off or delete.

Observe on Safe Mode

If you can’t remember any downloaded app that may be causing this problem, you can try to observe your phone on Safe Mode to check. We suspect that a third party app may be causing this problem so this troubleshooting step may help. Be sure to restart your phone to Safe Mode minutes or hours the alarm usually goes off. Then, follow the steps below to boot it to safe mode:

1. Turn the device off.
2. Press and hold the Power key past the model name screen.
3. When “SAMSUNG” appears on the screen, release the Power key.
4. Immediately after releasing the Power key, press and hold the Volume down key.
5. Continue to hold the Volume down key until the device finishes restarting.
6. Safe mode will display in the bottom left corner of the screen.
7. Release the Volume down key when you see Safe Mode.

Remember, safe mode will suspend all downloaded (third party) apps, allowing only the ones that came with the system (pre-installed). If the alarm won’t sound while the phone is on safe mode, that means our suspicion, that an app is behind it, is true. To identify which of your apps is causing the trouble, you must use the method of elimination. Safe mode will not help you pinpoint the exact app so you still have to put in extra effort to narrow down possible suspects.

If this problem started right after you installed a new app, try to erase that app first. If that won’t work, continue the process of elimination with these steps:

1. Boot to safe mode.
2. See if unwanted alarm still goes off.
3. If problem is still there, uninstall another app you think may be causing the problem.
4. Then, restart the phone and wait for the time that the alarm goes off to check if the problem returns.
5. If the problem is still there, repeat Steps 1-4 until you’ve identified the problem app.

If the unwanted alarm won’t return after you’ve uninstalled an app, that app must be the culprit.

Keep in mind that factory reset will only help in this situation by getting rid of the cause. However, doing so won’t help you identify the problem app. Once you re-install the same set of apps without identifying the culprit, the problem may return. This is the reason why nothing changed after you factory reset your phone before contacting us.

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