CSRIC Clears Reports on EAS, Submarine Cable
An FCC advisory committee voted unanimously in favor of reports on an updated emergency alert system handbook and enhanced coordination for submarine cables, at a meeting Wednesday of the Communications Security, Reliability and Interoperability Council (CSRIC). The FCC meanwhile is to vote next month on an EAS order (see 1606220063).
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Council members signed off on an updated EAS handbook developed by its Working Group 3. The reference is used by all EAS participants and describes what actions should be taken during federal and local alerts. The current primer is “obsolete” and refers to rules that no longer exist, said presenter Kelly Williams, NAB senior director-engineering and technology policy. Also in the report, the group listed EAS rules that it recommends the FCC should update, he said.
“Alerting is such an important function for our nation,” said Public Safety Bureau Chief David Simpson. He praised the report for consolidating into one handbook what used to be five separate editions for five different classes of EAS participants. “This recognition of convergence is so important,” he said.
CSRIC also cleared a Working Group 4A report that said lack of coordination between government agencies can increase the risk of submarine cable damage. The report recommended ways to enhance coordination without increasing regulatory burdens, including establishing a single federal point of contact and clearinghouse for underwater cables, said presenter Catherine Creese, director of the Naval Seafloor Cable Protection Office. Among other recommendations, the report suggested proactive involvement by the FCC in marine spatial planning, guidance for regulatory reviews for new submarine cable construction and streamlining permitting requirements to authorize cable projects, she said.
The submarine cable report aims for “timely exchange of information and greater coordination between the agencies,” said Simpson. “While [the FCC doesn’t] have jurisdictional authority over agencies in this space or those activities that threaten submarine cables, we have gotten fantastic participation within the last couple of months from all the important agencies involved in this arena, and commitment to participate in the clearinghouse that this working group has recommended.” The report dovetails well with an item to be voted on at Friday’s FCC meeting to enhance outage reporting for submarine cables, he said.
Several attendees cited the June 12 mass shooting in Orlando. CSRIC Chairman John Schanz said the event emphasizes the need and importance of the council’s work, and urged working groups to take it as a case study to analyze rapid response and emergency ecosystems, including 911 calls and emergency alerting. After Orlando, Working Group 2 “hit the pause button” and asked members to take lessons from the tragedy and consider whether anything can be incorporated into the body’s work on emergency alerting platforms, said Farrokh Khatibi, Qualcomm director-engineering.
Simpson announced a new working group on legacy systems and services, and the risks as they near end of life. Working Group 10 will first focus on security vulnerabilities in the Signaling System 7 (SS7) protocol that could lead to loss of confidential data and disruption of communications systems, he said. Simpson asked the council to consider other legacy systems that might be included in the group’s work. The next CSRIC meeting is Sept. 14.