Security News > 2020 > March > DDoS attacks could affect next generation 911 call systems

Despite a previous warning by Ben-Gurion University of the Negev researchers, who exposed vulnerabilities in 911 systems due to DDoS attacks, the next generation of 911 systems that now accommodate text, images and video still have the same or more severe issues.

In the study the researchers evaluated the impact of DDoS attacks on the current and next generation 911 infrastructures in North Carolina.

When telephone customers dial 911 on their landlines or mobile phones, the telephone companies' systems make the connection to the appropriate call center.

To demonstrate how DDoS attacks could affect 911 call systems, the researchers created a detailed simulation of North Carolina's 911 infrastructure, and a general simulation of the entire U.S. emergency-call system.

Using only 6,000 infected phones, it is possible to effectively block 911 calls from 20% of the state's landline callers, and half of the mobile customers.

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