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Broadcast Experts Stress Need for Alerting Origination Training

CSRIC highlights need for training for emergency alerting officials in its CAP EAS recommendations to FCC

The broadcast industry continues working to help update Common Alerting Protocol EAS.

The CAP EAS Working Group of the Communications Security, Reliability and Interoperability Council has delivered its recommendations to the FCC.

The report summarizes some of the group’s findings — focusing on issues relating to CAP architectures, security, CAP EAN, content of National Weather Service CAP messaging, and other key issues, according to Edward Czarnecki, a senior director with Digital Alert Systems, a division of Monroe Electronics. He co-chairs two CSRIC working groups.

Among CSRIC’s recommendations is the need for best practices to guide emergency managers and the system development community in the process of CAP EAS message origination.

The group, which consists of public warning professionals and equipment manufacturer representatives, strongly advises that the existing EAS audio (radio) relay based on the Primary Entry Point system should remain in place as a parallel system to CAP EAS to provide a reliable and redundant pathway for federal level emergency messaging.

The report also touches on security for all EAS participants and the need for further development of a CAP Emergency Action Notification streaming audio capability. EAN is the alerting code for a nationwide emergency presidential message.

“Efforts must be undertaken to effectively synchronize the messaging between radio-based PEP and IP-based CAP dissemination systems, including facilitating detection of message duplication,” said the 28-member group in the CSRIC report.

This was the third assembly of CSRIC. The council’s purpose is to provide recommendations to the FCC ensure optimal security and reliability of communications systems, including telecommunications, media, and public safety. The group’s current charter expired on Monday.

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