A U.S. hacker asserts he can break into the U.S. and Canadian Emergency Alert Systems and claims he could send a nationwide message through both systems. He said he was able to discover passwords from key manufacturers to access their systems. “Theoretically I can send anything from a volcano warning to the entire U.S. to an AMBER alert. If I really wanted, I could send out custom messages too,” he said. The hacker also warns of others with the same technological know-how.
In November 2020, hackers gained access to Florida’s emergency communications channel and sent an unauthorized message to the state’s emergency response team. “The fact that someone would use an emergency alert system for their own purpose, whatever it is, is both irresponsible and unlawful,” said Jason Mahon, communications director for the Florida Division of Emergency Management. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement has been asked to investigate.