false alarm

• Situation dans laquelle une alerte ou un signal avertit d'un danger ou d'une urgence, mais qui se révèle finalement erroné ou inutile.

A situation in which a warning or signal is given about something dangerous or urgent, but it turns out to be mistaken or unnecessary.

1. Unnecessary warningB1formal

   A warning or signal that is given but turns out to be unnecessary or incorrect.

   fausse alerte

   • The fire drill turned out to be a false alarm.
   • The security system triggered a false alarm last night.
   • Don't worry, the test results were a false alarm.

2. Misleading situationB1informal

   A situation where something appears to be a problem or danger but is not.

   fausse alerte

   • The news about the storm was a false alarm.
   • His sudden illness was just a false alarm.
   • The report of a data breach was a false alarm.