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.
A woman wearing a nurse's uniform walked into a hospital in Trois-Rivières, Quebec on May 26, 2014, and left with a baby who was born 16 hours earlier. The woman was not the mother of little Victoria McMahon and she drove away with the newborn in a red car with a sign that said "Baby on Board."
The hospital's security guards found a picture of the woman and staff members and patients provided details to municipal police about the suspect and her vehicle. Quebec AMBER Alert Coordinator Jean-Charles Benoit was contacted and he quickly determined the situation met the criteria for an AMBER Alert.
Quebec Provincial Police Sergeant Martine Asselin was at home when she got the call that an AMBER Alert was about to be issued. Asselin is the public information officer for her agency and she knew she needed to be ready to answer questions for the media. "The biggest challenge is to get the alert out as quickly as possible," said Asselin. "We have to be fast but the information has to be good."
This was the 10th AMBER Alert issued by the Quebec Provincial Police and every child from previous alerts had been recovered safely. Flyers with information about the latest alert went out to law enforcement, media, social media, transportation and other AMBER Alert partners.
"You have to be ready before it happens," said Asselin. "You have to have a protocol so everyone knows what to do."
They were trained and ready but everyone knew what was at stake. "Everyone is touched by this type of call," said Asselin. "It is their job but no one is immune to the emotions of a child needing help."
Charlène Plant and three friends saw the alert on Facebook and immediately joined the search. They recognized the suspect as a former neighbor and drove to her apartment and saw her car parked outside. "We just wanted to do something for the night, so we went out to find the car," Plant told a reporter.
They called the police and 50 minutes after the alert went out the baby was recovered safely and the suspect was in custody.
Not surprisingly, Victoria's mother, Mélissa McMahon, thanked everyone on Facebook. "The photo saved our daughter! In less than an hour, the photo was everywhere. You were more than thousands of people who shared the photo of this woman on social media. Know that it was this that saved her, our little Victoria. Every click, every share made the difference."
"The child was recovered safely and returned to her waiting parents within less than three hours," noted Canada AMBER Alert Coordinator Nancy Martin. "It was a proud moment for all involved."
Everyone involved in the Quebec AMBER Alert Program is also a big believer about the impact of social media. "Facebook was the reason this AMBER Alert was a success," said Asselin. "The fact that it went out on social media demonstrates that social media can really help in an AMBER Alert."
The use of social media and the fact it was the first time in recent memory that a child had been abducted from a hospital in Canada drew international attention to the case and the AMBER Alert system. "It was like a movie scenario," said Asselin. "We were very proud of the work by the police and we worked together as a team to use new tools to find a child."
Despite the success, Asselin said her agency will still look for new ways to help find abducted children. "We always can improve," she said. "We need to be sure we are on track and we need to make sure everyone is prepared."
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) are now using Twitter and 511 road service to distribute details about an abducted child. By sending a tweet about an AMBER Alert, officers hope to reach thousands of cell phones and electronic devices within seconds. When motorists see an AMBER Alert on highway signs, they can dial 511 for more information about the suspect's vehicle and more. “The more tools we have available, the greater chance we have to safely recover a child who may be in danger,” said OPP Deputy Commissioner Brad Blair.
When Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) Constable Nancy Martin started working on Canada's AMBER Alert Program in 2009 she found the system working effectively but separately. She made it a goal to make the nation's child abduction alert program stronger than the sum of its parts.
“In years past, each province did its own thing, without any real knowledge of what other provinces were doing or how it could affect them,” said Martin. “Now, as people can travel more easily and children are often transported over provincial and even national borders, the need for cooperation and teamwork has an even greater importance.”
In 2010 the RCMP hosted the first National AMBER Alert Working Group (NAAWG) Workshop to bring all AMBER Alert partners together. All the provincial AMBER Alert coordinators and others met to discuss how they could improve the system to help recover abducted children.
Martin is the National AMBER Alert Coordinator and works closely with Sergeant Jane Boissonneault, the Missing Persons Clearinghouse Manager and the NAAWG Chair. They continue through online training courses and teleconferences and sending regular emails to update everyone about the latest tool or innovation.
“Without Martin's dedication to the AMBER Alert program, we would not have the 10 provincial programs running as smoothly and working together as well as they do,” said Boissonneault. “She is the ‘go to’ resource for inquiries about AMBER Alert from our partners across the country.”
The two officers have also worked with the provincial AMBER Alert programs to put protocols in place between provinces and states that border each other to clarify what will happen when a child is taken across the border.
“Nancy has always been quick to offer support during a provincial activation of an alert and she has been the unwavering champion for the program,” said Sgt. Steve Montpetit, Ontario Provincial AMBER Alert Coordinator. “She has been devoted to the AMBER Alert program and has provided a sound and consistent voice for the program on a national level.”
Martin said working with Boissonneault as a team has made significant improvements in the program, but being a mom is what keeps her motivated. “No parent wants to hear that politics or lack of preparedness stood in the way of their child coming home safely,” said Martin. “If I can help by providing avenues of training or the sharing of opportunities for improvement, I can't imagine not doing it. If we make it impossible for an abductor to hide, we make it possible for a child to be saved.”