The satellite security blind spot: what it means for paramedics on the frontline

Over the course of the next 3 years, the UK's emergency services will be switching over to state-of-the-art handset and vehicle-mounted communication devices, operating on a private 4G network. Part of the Emergency Services Mobile Communications Programme (ESMCP), this new equipment can provide increased resilience and security across all communication channels and navigation devices used by frontline emergency services in the UK. In addition, new services and applications will be launched, which improve the function, efficiency and safety of the emergency services. However, the nature of the security landscape for these technologies and services is evolving rapidly. Their reliance on Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) to deliver location data to users of the ESMCP leaves them open to outside interference. Unless properly addressed and mitigated, these threats could pose a critical risk.

While physical maps and individual knowledge of local areas allow paramedics to find their way to critical locations, the use of satellite navigation is still used in the vast majority of tactical operations through the on-board vehicle mounted communications systems. What's more, the use of GNSS is likely to become even more integral to everyday missions. Oulu in Finland recently linked a monitoring system between the town's CCTV and central traffic light system with GNSS tracking. This enables emergency vehicles to be ‘green lighted’ through the main urban intersections to an incident anywhere in the municipal area, vastly improving the efficiency and effectiveness of the emergency response call-outs.