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this post was submitted on 28 Aug 2023
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I’m not a fan of click bait titles. Anyone wanna save the rest of us a click?
ancient, authenticationless emergency train stop system was used by russia supporters in malicious way. you can tell it by fragments of russian anthem and putin speeches transmitted after the stop signal on the same frequency
it's three tones at a specific VHF frequency, it's supposed to be transmitted by train and any other train in range has to stop automatically and immediately, but it's close to 2m band so any baofeng can be used to transmit there
it's been a known issue for years and polish railways is migrating to GSM based, authenticated system, expected to be completed in two years. they also have legendary delays in introducing new infrastructure so ymmv
there's no material damage, in fact it's a part of a system designed for limiting material damage, but some trains have to be stopped in addition to those stopped automatically, mass confusion results and delays are introduced both for freight and passenger trains
polish railways have issues with tech debt unseen anywhere else. besides outdated rolling stock, there were two mainframes of 1974 vintage (Odra 1305, ICL 1905 clone) up and running up to 2010 doing something at province-level stations. these things went straight to museum, and still work
things got better considerably, but priority goes to things that are visible
How is it clickbait? The title is not sensationalized or misleading. It is about a low-tech exploit of outdated radio control systems that has caused a lot of disruption for Poland.
Low tech is a feature in safety systems though. Fewer dependancies and easier troubleshooting means better.
We can't have nice things with Russia around though. I guess it's only a matter of time before they start spoofing TCAS or various radio navigation systems to cause civilian plane disruptions.
Low tech can definitely be a strategic choice, but this does not seem like that kind of situation. Just lack of updates. Sounds like this could have been done decades ago but it is just becoming a big issue now
Disrupted Poland's railway system ≠ triggered emergency brake in 20 trains