FCC says hackers hijack radio gear to send fake alerts, obscenities
https://www.ksl.com/article/51411087/fcc-says-hackers-hijack-radio-gear-to-send-fake-alerts-obscenities
WASHINGTON — Hackers are hijacking radio transmission equipment to broadcast bogus emergency messages and obscene language, the Federal Communications Commission said on Wednesday.
In a public notice, the FCC said a "recent string of cyber intrusions ..., resulting in the issuance of the Emergency Alert System's "attention signal." ...
The FCC said the hackers appeared to have compromised improperly secured equipment made by the Swiss network audio company Barix and reconfigured it "to receive attacker-controlled audio in lieu of station programming." ... The FCC notice cited reporting from the last few days about radio streams in Texas and Virginia being hijacked to broadcast bigoted or offensive material. ...
Barix did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment. However, in a 2016 statement issued in the wake of a similar spate of hijackings, the company said: "Barix would like to emphasize that its devices are secure for broadcast use when set up correctly and protected with a strong password." ... ..
FCC says hackers hijack radio gear to send fake alerts, obscenities
https://www.ksl.com/article/51411087/fcc-says-hackers-hijack-radio-gear-to-send-fake-alerts-obscenities
It's apparently happened again.. After the FCCs recent notices, Barix came out with their own statement reported in Radio World a few days ago: “If you are operating Barix devices with an accessible web-based interface directly on the internet without robust network security, itʼs time to reconsider,” the company said in an email distributed on Dec. 9." https://www.radioworld.com/news-and-business/barix-disaptches-security-reminder-to-its-users
But besides the two recent barix hacks, I knew I had heard similar stories in the past, it's nothing new, a search here reveals Tim in Bovey posted an FCC Public Notice about them back in February 2017: "It has come to our attention that unauthorized persons recently may have illegally gained access to certain audio streaming devices used by broadcasters, and may have transmitted potentially offensive or indecent material to the public. We believe that the reported cases involved unauthorized access to equipment manufactured by Barix, " https://www.part15.org/community/postid/4832/
Bottom line, they are ideal for transmission over private LANS but not over internet.