4 ms·

So apparently having to ask the operators nicely to send all their customers an SMS (as they did last year for the first lockdown) is not ideal, and it might be

by adwww 5y ago

So apparently having to ask the operators nicely to send all their customers an SMS (as they did last year for the first lockdown) is not ideal, and it might be worth spending the money on setting up an alert system after all!

andyjohnson0 5y ago
Presumably they're using the existing GSM/LTE Cell Broadcast mechanism. There may have been some work to do on agreeing protocols for access to it, but I don't think they're building anything from scratch. I just checked my phone settings (Android) and I have cell broadcasts enabled, but test messages are turned off. I wonder what message category they'll use.
- g_p 5y ago
  They are using 4G/LTE cell broadcast, with integration on the back-end to Gov.UK notify. There's nothing truly from scratch here (thankfully), other than integration at non-telecoms layer to get the system working. I believe there is some interest (based on activity on GitHub around standards) in using some existing emergency alerting XML standards for the non-telecoms parts of the system too.
  - bennyp101 5y ago
    Which doesn't seem to have been communicated very well, judging by the comments on some local news sites ... There's a lot of "my privacy" and "I didn't consent to this" etc going on sigh
    - g_p 5y ago
      There's some explanatory content available at https://www.gov.uk/alerts https://www.gov.uk/alerts but it doesn't seem like many people are aware cell broadcast is a privacy preserving solution...
  - gwoplock 5y ago
    Is this similar to the technology used for the US Wireless emergency alerts?
    - andyjohnson0 5y ago
      Yes, WEA uses cell broadcast. "Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEAs) are short emergency messages from authorized federal, state, local, tribal and territorial public alerting authorities that can be broadcast from cell towers to any WEA‐enabled mobile device in a locally targeted area. Wireless providers primarily use cell broadcast technology for WEA message delivery." https://www.fema.gov/emergency-managers/practitioners/integrated-public-alert-warning-system/public/wireless-emergency-alerts https://www.fema.gov/emergency-managers/practitioners/integr...
kevincox 5y ago
The main advantage here seems to be that it is highly targeted based on location. It can both catch tourists and and avoid bothering people who are out of town. The downside is that people are more familiar with alternate communication methods with SMS or EMail where people can check their history, forward to people who need it. Furthermore (like SMS) this requires a connection to the cell tower, which some tablets may not have even if they have internet. But overall it seems like a good idea.
- monkeynotes 5y ago
  > Furthermore (like SMS) this requires a connection to the cell tower, which some tablets may not have even if they have internet. Some people don't have tablets OR cell phones. I doubt the objective is to reach 100% of all people.
- Nextgrid 5y ago
  > Furthermore (like SMS) this requires a connection to the cell tower, which some tablets may not have even if they have internet. Seems like the government just needs to provide RSS feeds per location, so that internet-only devices can receive the alerts too. I'm actually surprised there is no easy way to access said alerts (whether emergency weather alerts or Amber) over the internet in the US last time I checked. Strange for a system whose sole purpose is to alert as many people as possible, but I bet some scum is rent-seeking by charging exorbitant amounts for these data feeds and certain companies are bound by law to display those alerts and have no choice but to pay that.
collyw 5y ago
What for? We haven't needed one until now?
- adwww 5y ago
  There are parts of the country that regularly flood. The environment agency use an opt in system for SMS alerts at the moment, I can see a targeted broadcast being a lot more effective. Also, waiting until you need an emergency system is a really bad idea!

by adwww 5y ago

andyjohnson0 5y ago

Presumably they're using the existing GSM/LTE Cell Broadcast mechanism. There may have been some work to do on agreeing protocols for access to it, but I don't think they're building anything from scratch. I just checked my phone settings (Android) and I have cell broadcasts enabled, but test messages are turned off. I wonder what message category they'll use.

g_p 5y ago
They are using 4G/LTE cell broadcast, with integration on the back-end to Gov.UK notify. There's nothing truly from scratch here (thankfully), other than integration at non-telecoms layer to get the system working. I believe there is some interest (based on activity on GitHub around standards) in using some existing emergency alerting XML standards for the non-telecoms parts of the system too.
- bennyp101 5y ago
  Which doesn't seem to have been communicated very well, judging by the comments on some local news sites ... There's a lot of "my privacy" and "I didn't consent to this" etc going on sigh
  - g_p 5y ago
    There's some explanatory content available at https://www.gov.uk/alerts https://www.gov.uk/alerts but it doesn't seem like many people are aware cell broadcast is a privacy preserving solution...
- gwoplock 5y ago
  Is this similar to the technology used for the US Wireless emergency alerts?
  - andyjohnson0 5y ago
    Yes, WEA uses cell broadcast. "Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEAs) are short emergency messages from authorized federal, state, local, tribal and territorial public alerting authorities that can be broadcast from cell towers to any WEA‐enabled mobile device in a locally targeted area. Wireless providers primarily use cell broadcast technology for WEA message delivery." https://www.fema.gov/emergency-managers/practitioners/integrated-public-alert-warning-system/public/wireless-emergency-alerts https://www.fema.gov/emergency-managers/practitioners/integr...

kevincox 5y ago

The main advantage here seems to be that it is highly targeted based on location. It can both catch tourists and and avoid bothering people who are out of town. The downside is that people are more familiar with alternate communication methods with SMS or EMail where people can check their history, forward to people who need it. Furthermore (like SMS) this requires a connection to the cell tower, which some tablets may not have even if they have internet. But overall it seems like a good idea.

monkeynotes 5y ago
> Furthermore (like SMS) this requires a connection to the cell tower, which some tablets may not have even if they have internet. Some people don't have tablets OR cell phones. I doubt the objective is to reach 100% of all people.
Nextgrid 5y ago
> Furthermore (like SMS) this requires a connection to the cell tower, which some tablets may not have even if they have internet. Seems like the government just needs to provide RSS feeds per location, so that internet-only devices can receive the alerts too. I'm actually surprised there is no easy way to access said alerts (whether emergency weather alerts or Amber) over the internet in the US last time I checked. Strange for a system whose sole purpose is to alert as many people as possible, but I bet some scum is rent-seeking by charging exorbitant amounts for these data feeds and certain companies are bound by law to display those alerts and have no choice but to pay that.

collyw 5y ago

What for? We haven't needed one until now?

adwww 5y ago
There are parts of the country that regularly flood. The environment agency use an opt in system for SMS alerts at the moment, I can see a targeted broadcast being a lot more effective. Also, waiting until you need an emergency system is a really bad idea!