Interference leaves broadcasters in a jam

Interference leaves broadcasters in a jam

ＢＢＣ　Ｍｏｎｉｔｏｒｉｎｇ　29 Aug 2014

By Duncan Stanworth
Jamming, the term for deliberate interference to radio and TV broadcasts, is a pressing problem for world broadcasters and satellite companies.
It can be particularly acute when political tensions are running high.
Satellite TV jamming has been traced to several countries; including Iran. Shortwave radio jamming, which was a feature of Cold War broadcasting, is still practised - notably by China (pictured above).

How satellite jamming works

There are two main ways to obstruct a satellite signal.

Iranian authorities restrict what domestic audiences can see

Uplink jamming works by transmitting a powerful, interfering signal on the frequency which is used to send a broadcast to the satellite.
It can affect viewers across a huge area and cause unintended interference to other broadcasters.
Downlink jamming is localized. It relies on transmitters on the ground, which block the signals beaming down from the satellite to viewers' dishes.　

Jamming in Iran

Recent reports from Iran say the authorities are stepping up their efforts to stop people watching foreign satellite TV stations by intensifying downlink jamming.
Websites which track the interference speculate about where it comes from. Some say flag poles, which have sprouted in Tehran and other cities, may be involved.

Other theories include the use of specially-equipped vehicles and "suspicious" aerials on the rooftops of state-owned buildings.
Some Iranian papers say the strong jamming signals are causing health problems. But the reports of miscarriages and cancers tend to cite anecdotal evidence.
Western broadcasters - including the BBC, Voice of America and Deutsche Welle - have also complained about uplink jamming of their TV programmes in Persian.
Eutelsat, a major satellite firm based in Paris, said in 2013 that "deliberate jamming operations" could be traced to Iran.
But in February 2014, the US waived sanctions on Iran's state broadcaster IRIB after it determined that "harmful satellite interference" was not currently coming from Iran.

Arab turmoil

Turmoil in the Arab world has also spurred the satellite jammers.
In 2012, Arabsat and Eutelsat said uplink interference to Al-Jazeera TV could be traced to Iran and Syria.
At the same time, American and European broadcasters said interference from Syria was disrupting satellite broadcasts "in an arc from Russia through Europe, Central Asia and the Middle East".
In 2011, Mu'ammar al-Qadhafi's Libya was reported to be a source of jamming, but was itself a target.　

China

Other offenders include China, which has for years jammed Chinese and Tibetan-language radio programmes from the West, including those of the BBC, Voice of America and US government-backed Radio Free Asia (RFA).

China has for long been jamming broadcasts from the West

North Korea jams shortwave broadcasts from RFA and South Korean stations. It is reported to be using Chinese-made equipment.
In Africa, Ethiopia has long been jamming opposition and international broadcasts, while Zimbabwe is said to have used Chinese equipment to interfere with broadcasts from foreign and exile radio stations.　

Tackling the jammers

Jamming is against the rules laid down by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), a UN body. But there are few ways to stop it.
Satellite broadcasters may change or add frequencies, but this relies on viewers being tech-savvy enough to retune their receivers or move their dishes.
But the future may hold high-tech solutions.
Eutelsat's 8 West B satellite, which is due for launch in 2015 and will serve the Middle East, boasts new technology which allows the operator to change the frequency of an uplink signal with no impact on viewers.
Eutelsat says this marks a "major breakthrough in the bid for continuity of service for broadcast signals jammed by rogue uplink signals".

BBC condemns Ethiopian broadcast jamming

This is a deliberate act of vandalism...Liliane Landor, acting Director, BBC World Service Group

Date: 30.05.2014     Last updated: 30.05.2014 at 16.07

Category: World Service

Liliane Landor, acting Director of the BBC World Service Group, has called on the Ethiopian authorities to stop jamming BBC broadcasts in the Middle East and North Africa.

She joined directors from Deutsche Welle, France 24, and the US Broadcasting Board of Directors which oversees the Voice of America, in condemning the flagrant violation of the clearly established international procedures on operating satellite equipment.
Liliane Landor said: “The BBC calls upon the Ethiopian authorities to end this interference. They are disrupting international news broadcasts for no apparent reason. This is a deliberate act of vandalism that tarnishes their reputation.”
During the past week, BBC television and radio broadcasts on the Arabsat satellites have been affected by intentional uplink interference. Many international television broadcasts, including those from France 24 and Deutsche Welle, have been badly affected.
The satellite operator Arabsat has reported that the interference has come from within Ethiopia. The interference is intensive and affects services on all three Arabsat satellites. Unlike previous instances of intentional interference, these events do not appear to be linked to any particular content or channel on these satellites.
The interference is contrary to the international regulations that govern the use of radio frequency transmissions and the operation of satellite systems, and inhibits the ability of individuals to freely access media according to Article 19 of the UN Declaration of Human Rights.
CM7

Arabsat locates jamming source in Ethiopian territories

May 29, 2014 15.08 Europe/London By Robert Briel

Arab Satellite Communication Organisation (Arabsat) has announced that many TV channels on-board its fleet of satellites have been the subject of intentional jamming for the past week up to today.
Arabsat engineers conducted detailed analysis to identify the source of the jamming, it was confirmed that this interference was originating from Ethiopian territories. It is not clear which broadcasts are targeted this time.
In Febrnuary 2012, Arabsat also said it suffered from jamming from Ethiopia. At the time, broadcasts from several Lebanese channels and Al-Jazeera have been jammed in the past year on the frequencies of Arabsat and Nilesat. However, Ethiopia tried to target the Erithrean Television, as well as broadcasts from Deutsche Welle, Al-Jazeera Arabic and VOA, and it seemed that most other jamming was unintentional.
In a statement, the satellite operator said “Arabsat expresses its resentment for such an illegal act and is surprise for this vandalism as there are no Ethiopian or Eritrean channels broadcast within Arabsat DTH bouquets. This jamming may be aimed at some opponents channels for one of the two countries channels that are broadcasted on board satellites near Arabsat 26 degrees East neighbourhood or on board other satellites which Arabsat has no relation with.
“Arabsat assures to its customers that it is tackling this issue both at national and international level. International Telecommunication Union and Arab League has been informed of this issue and several efforts are underway to mediate the situation.
“Arabsat will follow up the matter and take all appropriate actions to prosecute the culprit at the judicial authorities and the international organisation of frequencies and any legal means that may deem appropriate to ensure that any damage already incurred or to be incurred by the noise, will not go without legal action, regardless of whether this damage is direct or indirect.
“Arabsat is deeply thankful to its respected valued customers for their understanding and supporting for ARABSAT as this intentional jamming is beyond its control.
(Picture courtesey of Kim Andrew Elliott’s website on international broadcasting)

Russia Clamps Down Further on U.S. International Media

April 4, 2014

79 Share on print

Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, visits the headquarters of “Russia Today” TV channel in Moscow, Russia, (AP Photo/Yuri Kochetkov, Pool)

The Broadcasting Board of Governors has condemned a recent decision by Russian authorities to cut off all remaining radio transmissions by U.S. international media in Russia.
In a one-sentence letter dated March 21, Dmitry Kiselev, the director of the information agency Rossiya Segodnya (Russia Today), stated that “we are not going to cooperate” with the BBG’s request to continue a long-standing contract for broadcasting on Russian soil.   Effective at the end of March, this decision removes the last vestige of Voice of America programming – including news in Russian and English-language lessons – from a local frequency in Moscow (810 AM).
“Moscow has chosen to do the wrong thing and restrict free speech,” said BBG Chairman Jeff Shell. “This is a fundamental value shared by many countries around the world.  The BBG will continue to reach audiences in Russia through digital platforms and via satellite transmissions.”
Distribution of VOA and RFE/RL programming in Russia reached a high point in 2005, when VOA Russian programming was distributed on a nationwide television network and both VOA and RFE/RL had extensive partnerships with domestic Russian radio stations. But starting in that year, the Russian government turned greater attention to these stations and asked them all to re-apply for their licenses.  And beginning in 2006, by denying the licenses of the stations that re-applied and intimidating the others, Russian authorities systematically eliminated domestic radio distribution of BBG-supported programs and almost all television distribution. In 2012, Russian authorities forced RFE/RL off its last remaining domestic radio outlet, an AM frequency in Moscow.
“We urge Mr. Kiselev and other Russian authorities to open Russian airwaves to more of our programs and those of other international broadcasters,” Shell added. “We’re asking for an even playing field: As Moscow’s media crackdown deepens, Russian media – including RT television – enjoy open access to the airwaves in the United States and around the world. The Russian people deserve the same freedom to access information.”
Kiselev, known for his strident anti-Western and homophobic views on Russian state television, was appointed in December 2013 to lead Russia Today. At the same time the Voice of Russia and the RIA Novosti news agency were merged into Russia Today.
The move also comes amid a fast-moving campaign to target opposition and independent media.  Lists of “traitors” have been circulating in Moscow, and pro-Kremlin analyst Sergei Markov recently added RFE/RL’s Russian Service, Radio Liberty to his “list of traitors” on Facebook. In the same vein, politonline.ru, a part of the Pravda.ru media holding, has created Russia’s first top-20 list of the most “anti-Russian” news outlets. This list, which places Radio Liberty sixth, is being shared by influential Russian political advisors such as Alexander Dugin, who wrote on his Facebook page that “this is the order in which Russia’s most contemptible media outlets will be closed or blocked.”
Russians are increasingly turning to the Internet and social media for their news.  VOA’s digital strategy incorporates content across platforms.  In addition to live interactives with domestic television channels, such as Russian Business Channel, VOA’s web-TV show, Podelis, allows users to connect and engage with the content in real time using social media. Podelis, which means “share” in Russian, provides a unique opportunity to engage in discussions about current events, Russian politics and U.S.-Russia relations. VOA’s social media following in Russia has grown significantly and visits to VOA’s website have doubled every year since 2008.
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty’s Russian Service provides 24 hours of radio programming via the Internet and satellite, a website that was visited more than 6.5 million times in March, and a strong presence on social media such as Facebook and Twitter. RFE/RL has started a multi-hour, daily video stream for Russia consisting of coverage of the most important events with reactions from Russian citizens as well as opinions from the West. The stream also includes live roundtable ​discussions and expert interviews on Russia.
[Note: This statement has been corrected to remove a comment that RT television is under Mr. Kiselev’s authority.]

16 April 2014 Last updated at 13:27

The spooky world of the 'numbers stations'

By Olivia Sorrel-Dejerine BBC News Magazine

This is the era of hyper-tech espionage, encrypted emails and mindboggling cryptography. But you can hear a very old-fashioned form of espionage on shortwave radio.

It is 13:03 on a Tuesday in a cramped room with some fairly advanced radio equipment. What is suddenly heard on a shortwave receiving station is a 10-minute message in Morse code.
There is a small community of aficionados who believe messages like this are a throwback to the era of Cold War espionage. They are the mysterious "numbers stations".
At the apex of the Cold War, radio lovers across the globe started to notice bizarre broadcasts on the airwaves. Starting with a weird melody or the sound of several beeps, these transmissions might be followed by the unnerving sound of a strange woman's voice counting in German or the creepy voice of a child reciting letters in English.
Encountering these shortwave radio messages, many radio hams concluded that they were being used to send coded messages across extremely long distances. Coming across one of them was a curious experience. Radio enthusiasts gave them colourful names like the "Nancy Adam Susan", "The Lincolnshire Poacher," "The Swedish Rhapsody" or "The Gong Station."
The Lincolnshire Poacher was so named because of two bars from an English folk song of that name being used as an "interval signal".

Times have changed and technology has evolved, but there's evidence that this old-fashioned seeming method of communication might still be used. Shortwave numbers stations might seem low-tech but they probably remain the best option for transmitting information to agents in the field, some espionage experts suggest.
"Nobody has found a more convenient and expedient way of communicating with an agent," says Rupert Allason, an author specialising in espionage issues and writing under the pen name Nigel West.
"Their sole purpose is for intelligence agencies to communicate with their agents in denied areas - a territory where it is difficult to use a consensual form of communications," Allason says.

A former GCHQ officer, who does not wish to be named, whose duty was to intercept signals towards the UK and search for these numbers stations in the 1980s is also adamant that these were broadcasts to agents in the field or in residencies or directed to embassies.
It was "one-way traffic" - the transmitters broadcast numbers to the recipient. The recipient did not reply.
Why might the numbers stations have been used?
"This system is completely secure because the messages can't be tracked, the recipient could be anywhere," says Akin Fernandez, the creator of the Conet Project - a comprehensive archive of the phenomenon of numbers stations. "It is easy. You just send the spies to a country and get them to buy a radio. They know where to tune and when," he says.
Fernandez was fascinated by the mystery of numbers stations.

Any kind of antenna, innocent or otherwise, might once have attracted raised eyebrows

"It was so weird I wanted to know more about them," he says. He put three years of his life aside in order to put together a coherent archive of these stations.
"Once you hear them, it has an effect on you," he says. "I never expected to be talking about it 17 years after hearing it for the first time - when the Conet Project first started."
Unlike other aspects of the Cold War era, the numbers stations didn't leave a lasting impression on popular culture. "It is a dry subject until you listen to them," Fernandez says.
"It is a way of communicating securely between the Secret Intelligent Service and agents, and it is incomprehensible," says Philip Davies, a politics and history professor at the Brunel University in London.

Continue reading the main story

The Magazine on spies

Revelations about the US National Security Agency's spying have provoked global outrage. But government snooping is nothing new, says Anthony Zurcher.
People and nations spy, even on friends. But in the realm of international electronic espionage, the US wields a nuclear arsenal while the rest of the globe fights with guns, says Tara McKelvey.
Most people have watched a spy film, but few have ever met someone from the intelligence community. So how close are real spies to the Bournes and the Bonds? Peter Taylor looks at the world of the modern day secret agent.

But espionage was not the only explanation posited. Some people have even argued that the phenomenon was an elaborate prank. But the scale of the stations - multiple frequencies in different languages - makes that explanation seem far-fetched. Fernandez notes that any prankster would need to buy millions of pounds of radio transmitters.

Despite the general veil of secrecy around espionage, the odd bit of corroborative evidence for the purpose of numbers stations has leaked out. "The purpose of numbers stations has been guessed at first by anonymous leaks, stories of people being arrested with radios and 'one-time pads' and other scattered pieces of evidence, as well as some privately published books and magazines," says Fernandez. The one-time pads enabled a form of code that would have been uncrackable to anyone listening in.
In 1989, a Czech spy was arrested in the UK because his equipment was faulty and it radiated into other people's flats. He was unlucky. "When the Ceausescu regime collapsed, there was a cessation of broadcasts from Romania," the former GCHQ officer says.
Experts are confident that numbers stations do still exist, even if there are fewer of them.
"In the same way spy tricks such as pretending to feed ducks around a pond might still exist, numbers stations still exist too," says Al Bolton, a radio amateur. "It is an old-fashioned means of communication but you have to think of security."
Computers almost always leave traces, whereas a paper and a pen are easy to destroy.

"The danger with a computer is that if you get caught, the data on it is still retrievable. Whereas with a one-time pad, you can eat it or flush it down the toilet," he says.
In the 2010 raids on a Russian spy ring in the US, court papers alleged that they had used "coded radio transmissions and encrypted data", a hint that they might have received their orders via shortwave numbers stations.
Despite all the clues, no government has ever officially admitted or denied using numbers stations, nor have intelligence agencies.
"Once The Conet Project was released, some spy agencies admitted that they were, 'not for public consumption'. This is as near to an admission that we have been able to obtain," Fernandez says.
Enthusiasts might be fighting sceptics about the stations' real purpose, but what is certain is that they aren't a pure product of imagination.
If you don't believe so "you could always get yourself a short wave radio, wait till the night time and then start scanning for them", Fernandez says.
And then listen and wonder.
Follow @BBCNewsMagazine on Twitter and on Facebook

Denying Involvement, Iran Vows to Investigate Jamming of Foreign Media

Radio Farda producer Sara Valinejad sits in the studio, Oct. 11, 2006, in Springfield, Virginia.

TEXT SIZE

Golnaz Esfandiari, RFE

April 05, 2014

Earlier this week, Iran's Minister of Communications and Information Technology Reza Taghipour denied his department's involvement in jamming satellite signals, and said the ministry was "seriously" pursuing the case.

"It is essential to trace and identify the source of jamming as the practice has many negative consequences," he said in an interview with the Iranian parliament's Icana website in August.

Foreign-based media channels – including VOA’s Persian service – have been routinely blocked for years in Iran and there are fears among Iranian health officials that the jamming equipment may cause cancer.

A report by the U.S. Broadcasting Board of Governors estimates that about one-fourth of Iranians have access to a satellite dish and that an average of 32 percent watch satellite television weekly. The Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting considers 40 percent of those shows forbidden programming and responds by jamming satellite signals.

While Iranian officials have acknowledged that signal jamming is taking place, and even warned of potentially negative consequences, no one in the government has stepped up to assume responsibility.

The head of the Iranian parliament's health committee, Hossein Ali Shahriari, reacted to Taghipour's comments by saying that the communications ministry was "very well" aware of the source of the jamming.

“But [the ministry] doesn’t want to announce it,” Shahriari said interview with the Asr-e Iran website, which is said to be close to Tehran’s mayor, Mohammad Ghalibaf.

Shahriari admitted that the source of the jamming is inside the country but declined to comment further.

According to Icana, Iran's Communication Regulatory Authority, the country's sole radio and communications regulator, has also denied knowledge of the jamming source.

The Iranian regime has long used signal jamming to disrupt the free flow of information, routinely jamming international broadcast signals, including the U.S.-funded  VOA Persian service, RFE/RL’s Persian Service, and Radio Farda in an attempt to prevent media coverage critical of Tehran from reaching Iranians.

According to some observers, the government seems to intensify jamming efforts during sensitive times, such as the 2009 antigovernment protests and the Arab Spring revolutions.

While officials insist that the source of the current jamming is a mystery, some opposition sources have reported that Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Force (IRGC) is behind it.

Meanwhile, there are growing health concerns about the impact of jamming.

Massoumeh Ebtekar, a member of Tehran’s city council, said recently that jamming is dangerous for the health of Tehran’s residents.

"What we know is that these signals have an impact on people’s health and the body’s cells,” said Ebtekar, who blames the government for the jamming. “As an immunologist and researcher, I'd say that these signals could be the source of many illnesses.”

Other lawmakers and some physicians, have also warned about the health dangers posed by signal jamming.

There have been media reports on Iranians, especially in Tehran, who felt dizzy and ill for no apparent reason.

Jammers work by emitting signals at the same frequency as the device they’re attempting to block.