Emergency phones are single-use telephones that can be used in a crisis when the user cannot quickly reach their mobile device. To use an e-phone, the user should press a single button without picking a handler or dialing any number. A dispatcher from Emergency Communications will take the call and ask what assistance they need.

The University of Utah has around 200 e-phones mainly located in housing and parking lots—including Health Sciences spaces. Some of these e-phones have a blue light on top; others, like those found in housing, do not have lights.