Comments are due May 13, replies May 28, on a March 20 NPRM seeking comment on “approaches to improve the reliability and resiliency of the communications infrastructure necessary to ensure continued availability of the Nation’s 911 emergency communications system, particularly during times of major disaster,” the FCC said (http://bit.ly/170xr87). The deadline comes with publication of a summary of the NPRM in the Federal Register.
EU lawmakers extended the term of the European Network and Information Security Agency (ENISA) for another seven years, the European Parliament said Tuesday. The cyber watchdog will be given more funding and resources to cope with a beefed-up role, it said. ENISA now has a clear mandate to help support the setup and functions of a full-scale EU computer emergency response team and to counter cyberattacks at the EU level, it said. National bodies and EU institutions can ask for expertise and advice from the agency in cases of significant security breaches, it said. ENISA is headquartered in Heraklion, Crete, and will now have a branch office in Athens to improve its efficiency. Lawmakers also agreed to establish an executive board to allow managers to focus on strategic issues, Parliament said. The European Commission said the vote marked the end of lengthy political talks between Parliament and the Council of Ministers, which backed the seven-year extension in February. The legislation “offers a new start for a new Enisa,” said Digital Agenda Commissioner Neelie Kroes in a written statement. It will help secure European networks and information systems, in line with EU cybersecurity strategy, she said.
EU lawmakers extended the term of the European Network and Information Security Agency (ENISA) for another seven years, the European Parliament said Tuesday. The cyber watchdog will be given more funding and resources to cope with a beefed-up role, it said. ENISA now has a clear mandate to help support the setup and functions of a full-scale EU computer emergency response team and to counter cyberattacks at the EU level, it said. National bodies and EU institutions can ask for expertise and advice from the agency in cases of significant security breaches, it said. ENISA is headquartered in Heraklion, Crete, and will now have a branch office in Athens to improve its efficiency. Lawmakers also agreed to establish an executive board to allow managers to focus on strategic issues, Parliament said. The European Commission said the vote marked the end of lengthy political talks between Parliament and the Council of Ministers, which backed the seven-year extension in February. The legislation “offers a new start for a new Enisa,” said Digital Agenda Commissioner Neelie Kroes in a written statement. It will help secure European networks and information systems, in line with EU cybersecurity strategy, she said.
There were failures among many types of emergency alert system participants and at many levels in the so-called daisy chain distributing EAS warnings, the FCC said sixteen months after the first nationwide simulation. There’s a “Need for Additional Rulemakings” and other steps by the commission and Federal Emergency Management Agency before another test is held, said one subsection heading of the Public Safety Bureau report. The study sought a “re-examination” of FCC state EAS plan rules, with some plans not providing enough details about alert propagation, said the report. EAS stakeholders we spoke with said they generally backed its recommendations and found it a useful document even so long after the Nov. 9, 2011, test. Members of Congress were among those who had scrutinized the results and sought such an autopsy (CD Nov 18/11 p1).
Critics of Progeny’s proposed rollout of its E-911 location service told FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski that the agency should carefully consider the impact the service would have on fellow users of the 900 MHz Multilateration Location and Monitoring Service band before greenlighting it. The members of the Part 15 Coalition, a group of unlicensed Part 15 device users which occupy the 902-928 MHz band, said they're concerned the FCC was moving too quickly toward a decision on the Progeny 911 location service, which they said has the potential to cause “unacceptable levels” of interference. Coalition members and Progeny officials each said told us Friday that the other side was attempting to draw attention away from the technical record. The service would help locate wireless callers to 911.
Carriers are moving toward a voluntary solution so subscribers can send emergency text messages to public safety answering points, Verizon and Verizon Wireless said in reply comments at the FCC. But a group representing the deaf and hard of hearing said the FCC should impose a mandate on all carriers. In December, the FCC approved a further NPRM asking questions about how the commission can best make sure that all wireless subscribers will one day be able to send 911 text messages, amid warnings that widespread ability to do so could be many years way (CD Dec 13 p12). Verizon pointed to continuing progress. “Just last week, the Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions and the Telecommunications Industry Association released a new technical standard that will provide service providers and PSAPs with a clear and feasible technology path toward text-to-911 implementation,” Verizon said (http://bit.ly/10Q16hU). “The Competitive Carriers Association also announced that most of its members will be able to implement the ‘bounceback’ requirement by the Agreement’s June 30 target. And Verizon Wireless launched text-to-911 service in Frederick, Md., where the Maryland School for the Deaf is located, and is working with PSAPs and other officials on deployments in several other states and localities.” A coalition led by Telecommunications for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing said the FCC should impose a mandate. “Text- to -911 is critical for more than just disability access,” the coalition said (http://bit.ly/Zbs7fP). “This Text-to -911 solution would not only provide access for people who are deaf and hard of hearing, and other TTY users, but provide a viable alternative for hearing people who are unable to use their voice while calling 911 due to speech disabilities or emergency circumstances where silence is necessary to avoid detection and further harm to their well being.” Earlier comments in general support the use of SMS as an interim solution for carriers to put in place for texting to 911, AT&T said. “While there is some diversity of opinion on the scope of the obligation to provide text-to-911 and on aspects of its implementation, in the main the comments applicable to CMRS providers support using the Carrier-NENA-APCO Agreement as a template for any interim solution,” AT&T said (http://bit.ly/14ejPIL). “NENA is encouraged by the many supportive comments filed in response to the FNPRM,” the National Emergency Number Association said in reply comments(http://bit.ly/10Q5a1B). “In addition to providing a factual record for the Commission’s interim text proceeding, the comments relating to interconnected- and applications-based-text providers clearly demonstrate the additional capabilities (e.g., enhanced location determination) that can come from these now-common services.” In the earlier comment round CTIA warned the FCC that a text-to-911 mandate on carriers may not survive a judicial challenge (CD March 13 p12). “NENA agrees with AT&T that the 21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010 (CVAA) provides clear authority for the Commission’s proposed Text-to-911 rules,” the group said. “Despite trade-group insistence to the contrary, the CVAA cannot be read so narrowly as to exclude Commission authority over the transition to IP-enabled emergency services like interim Text-to-911."
The framework will need to take into account how government and industry typically view critical infrastructure cybersecurity, Microsoft said. The government “tends to look at critical infrastructure as a monolithic collection of systems and services,” while industry “looks at core elements within its direct control or its contractual obligations to deliver services,” Microsoft said. If the government focuses too much on high-impact -- but low probability -- threat scenarios, the framework could include “requirements and compliance obligations that may not necessarily improve cybersecurity for critical infrastructure or private sector enterprises,” Microsoft said. The framework should be based on six foundational principles, Microsoft said -- risk-based, outcome-focused, prioritized, practicable, “respectful of privacy and civil liberties” and globally relevant. It should also include a cohesive risk assessment and risk management structure, Microsoft said.
The framework will need to take into account how government and industry typically view critical infrastructure cybersecurity, Microsoft said. The government “tends to look at critical infrastructure as a monolithic collection of systems and services,” while industry “looks at core elements within its direct control or its contractual obligations to deliver services,” Microsoft said. If the government focuses too much on high-impact -- but low probability -- threat scenarios, the framework could include “requirements and compliance obligations that may not necessarily improve cybersecurity for critical infrastructure or private sector enterprises,” Microsoft said. The framework should be based on six foundational principles, Microsoft said -- risk-based, outcome-focused, prioritized, practicable, “respectful of privacy and civil liberties” and globally relevant. It should also include a cohesive risk assessment and risk management structure, Microsoft said.
The framework will need to take into account how government and industry typically view critical infrastructure cybersecurity, Microsoft said. The government “tends to look at critical infrastructure as a monolithic collection of systems and services,” while industry “looks at core elements within its direct control or its contractual obligations to deliver services,” Microsoft said. If the government focuses too much on high-impact -- but low probability -- threat scenarios, the framework could include “requirements and compliance obligations that may not necessarily improve cybersecurity for critical infrastructure or private sector enterprises,” Microsoft said. The framework should be based on six foundational principles, Microsoft said -- risk-based, outcome-focused, prioritized, practicable, “respectful of privacy and civil liberties” and globally relevant. It should also include a cohesive risk assessment and risk management structure, Microsoft said.
LAS VEGAS -- Global interoperability and spectrum efficiency need to be the biggest cornerstones of any next-generation broadcast system if terrestrial broadcasters want to retake valuable competitive ground lost to wireless carriers, streaming services and other content-delivery rivals, various speakers said Sunday at the NAB Show’s Broadcast Engineering Conference. Though terrestrial Ultra HD and 3D TV are on the list of desired features of the next-gen system, they're nowhere as high on the priority scale as other attributes like mobility or interactivity, or so it appeared from the many speakers who gave presentations at the conference.