Are You Carrying a Bomb in Your Pocket-Questioning the Safety of Electronic Devices

Hezbollah exploding pagers have left the whole world in a state of shock, as no one knows what checks can be put on the safety of electronic devices so that such scary incidents can be controlled. Hezbollah an Iran-backed terror group received a major blow on the 17^th of September 2024 when around 3000 pagers exploded within a span of an hour in the afternoon. The attack injured thousands and killed several people when the pagers used by the Hezbollah members as a replacement to the vulnerable mobile phones exploded right in front of their eyes. On Wednesday, the next day itself another such attack happened that again resulted in heavy loss and injuries.

What Exactly Happened?

Israeli intelligence had intercepted a shipment of pager batteries that had been ordered from a company and the order was placed from Lebanon. The intelligence agency successfully seized the shipment and secretly made changes to the batteries. Battery Casings were inserted with Kiska 3, an undetectable, small explosive and these explosives were connected to the battery wires via a discreet chip. The batteries in the pagers were programmed to heat up and detonate on the command given by the chip. This chip was remotely activated by sending a common message to all targeted pagers simultaneously, and hence causing the explosions.

Does this Episode Put a Huge Question Mark on the Safety of Electronic Devices?

The answer to this question is a big ‘Yes’, as this kind of operation actually shows how technology and precision can be used to create havoc in the world. Isreal has always been a pioneer in using sophisticated cyber and intelligence warfare, but does this put any doubt on the technological superiority of other nations around the world? This act was a combination of capabilities like the supply-chain infiltration, cyber warfare and cyber intelligence. These explosive pagers have created a new fear in the community and the people are actually scared that everyday devices like mobile phones, headphones, laptops and Airpods are at a huge risk. These devices blew up on the command given by a chip that could be remotely activated, so that puts a question mark on the safety of battery-operated devices. However, the experts believe otherwise, and they think that these kinds of attacks are targeted attacks and they have also assured that such acts would never be performed on devices like mobile phones that are used by a common man for carrying out his routine tech-based tasks.

Which All Devices are Unsafe According to Experts?

Co-founder and CEO, Safe Security told Tech Today, “A similar attack against a smartphone is possible if the device is physically compromised but in an intact device the chances are minimal”. Some experts also have an opinion that branded smartphones have advanced security features that can prevent such acts. According to them the most vulnerable point is the supply chain, where the main risk lies. They also believe that small devices like smartwatches and earbuds are more vulnerable to such attacks.