Jammers have a great impact on public safety

Revels Greg G. July 13, 2020 10:30

Communication provides a vital lifeline for first responders and federal law enforcement personnel in the United States to ensure that they can do their duty to protect and serve our citizens, communities, and nations. The illegal interference of the communication system (including the interference of GPS, radio and wireless systems) poses a threat to the national law enforcement and public safety, so many places prohibit the use of jammers.

May interfere with public safety communication and cause responders to lose important communication and urgent situational awareness. Although interference poses an increasing threat to public safety communications, many first responders and federal law enforcement personnel across the country are still unaware of the presence of jammers, or the jammers may hinder their communications. Federal law prohibits the operation, manufacture, sale, sale, import, distribution or transportation of interference equipment.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Agency (S&T) is committed to making first responders safer and more aware of interference and its potential impact on communications, security, and the ability to perform tasks. The Ministry of Homeland Security’s Science and Technology Department combats portable jammer threats by evaluating threats, developing and testing mitigation techniques and strategies, working with public safety agencies to update training procedures, and raising awareness of jamming threats and reporting channels. In 2016, DHS S&T held the "First Responder Electronic Interference Exercise" to assess the impact of interference on public safety communication systems and mission response, and identify gaps in training.

JamX 17-First Aid Intervention Exercise Logo Based on the results of the 2016 exercise, the 2017 first responder electronic jammer exercise (JamX 17) is the next step to make our country and community more resilient to interference threats. During JamX 17, DHS S&T and public safety, law enforcement, the private sector, and academic partners identified the impact of interference on various communication systems, and evaluated strategies and technologies to help responders better identify, locate, and mitigate interference. influences. S&T's goal is to enable federal, state, and local operators to identify, respond, report, and resolve congestion incidents without affecting missions or endangering communities. Please review the following sections to learn how to improve the ability of organizations and community communications to resist interference and other interference threats.