Amber Alert In NYC About Baby Kidnapping Scares New Yorkers, Sparks Backlash At 4AM

NEW YORK — Authorities say a 4 a.m. Amber Alert that startled many New Yorkers is part of a new national wireless emergency alert system.

The alert went out early Wednesday morning for a baby boy who was taken from a Manhattan child welfare facility without permission by his mother. She's been taken into custody.

A number of people who received the alert on their phones at around 4:15 a.m. Wednesday complained on Twitter that it jolted them awake and scared them.

State police investigator Dan Craven says the alerts are part of a system run by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. He says the alerts took effect in New York in March.

New Yorkers can opt out of receiving the alerts on their phone or by logging onto NYalert.gov.