CSRIC Moves Toward Broadcaster Disaster Response Recommendations
Broadcasters having satellite phones on hand and pressing more stations to sign up for the FCC's disaster information reporting system are among items the FCC Communications Security, Reliability and Interoperability Council is considering for dealing with emergencies. CSRIC adopted two working group reports Tuesday, one on broadcaster best practices and one on 911 interoperability in the transition from legacy to IP-based networks. The approved reports weren't posted Tuesday.
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Held telephonically because of COVID-19, the meeting was largely issue-free aside from starting a handful of minutes late as minor call-in issues were ironed out. The agency is pushing telework as an alternative to in-person meetings (see 2003120049). Mary Boyd of West Safety Services said the 911 Security Vulnerabilities During the IP Transition WG's work on its security vulnerabilities of hybrid systems began this month, and she remains optimistic about meeting its September deadline. Lee Thibaudeau of Nsight said progress on the Managing Security Risk in the Transition to 5G WG report due in June is still on time. Pat Roberts of the Florida Association of Broadcasters said the Improving Broadcast Resiliency WG focuses on best practices in the face of natural disasters such as hurricanes, floods and wildfires, but pandemics potentially should be a consideration in the future.
Much attention has been paid to issues like making sure transmitters stay on the air, but some studios also got destroyed in 2018's Category 5 Hurricane Michael, Roberts said. He said broadcasters should look at preparatory staffing issues and having cots and supplies on hand. Studios and transmitters should have multiple power sources, he said. Michael also wiped out local supply chains, and stations need to be prepared by having all their suppliers identified.
Roberts said broadcasters need to build relationships early with police, fire and emergency management personnel. He advocated relationships with social media platforms so important broadcaster information during emergencies is moved to the front pages of those sites in affected areas. Roberts said the FCC should consider adding broadcasters to the wireless priority service to ensure cell service for them when it's available. He said NAB will work with CSRIC on putting together the best practices and distributing them to stations.
That at least 39 percent of states have awarded next-generation 911 contracts and 31 percent of the nation's public service answering points have implemented emergency services IP networks "is a great sign," said West's Boyd, pointing to sizable movement toward interoperability as networks migrate to NG-911. She said based on surveying of 37 states, voice 911 enjoys the highest level of interoperability among the public safety answering points, but on the downside the technologies used to manage an incident through dispatch of emergency response field personnel isn't as interoperable.
With greater NG-911 interoperability, there's more of a need for cybersecurity threat identification and mitigation technologies and strategies, Boyd said.