Flaw in Emergency Alert Systems Could Allow Hackers to Trigger False Alarms
Apr 10, 2018
A serious vulnerability has been exposed in "emergency alert systems" that could be exploited remotely via radio frequencies to activate all the sirens, allowing hackers to trigger false alarms. The emergency alert sirens are used worldwide to alert citizens about natural disasters, man-made disasters, and emergency situations, such as dangerous weather conditions, severe storms, tornadoes and terrorist attacks. False alarms can create panic and chaos across the city, as witnessed in Dallas last year , when 156 emergency sirens were turned on for about two hours, waking up residents and sparking fears of a disaster. Dubbed " SirenJack Attack ," the vulnerability discovered by a researcher at Bastille security firm affects warning sirens manufactured by Boston-based ATI Systems, which are being used across major towns and cities, as well as Universities, military facilities, and industrial sites. According to Balint Seeber, director of threat research at...
