BIG BROTHER FOR DIGITAL AND 5G

 Filenews 5 September 2020 - by Petros Theoharidis

State-of-the-art monitoring system for all radio broadcasts, their sources and technical parameters, automatically identifying which of them are legal and which are not, as well as interference analysis, including new digital and future types of radio broadcasts, such as 5G, is soon acquired by Cyprus.

The system will record all emissions in the range from 9 KH2 to 6 GH2, i.e. virtually the entire spectrum in which radio frequency transmission can be made. It will supervise compliance with the legislation in relation to spectrum in Cyprus, but will also identify sources and characteristics of interference at a distance of up to hundreds of kilometers outside Cyprus, since often the fact that Cyprus is an island and surrounded by sea creates various phenomena in radio broadcasts and radio communications.

As announced yesterday, by launching a tender, the Government of the Republic of Cyprus, through the Electronic Communications Department of the Ministry of Digital Policy, wishes to replace the existing national radio frequency surveillance system of the national radio frequency spectrum management and surveillance system (ESDEF) in order to continue to effectively manage existing radio communications and to ensure the availability of a clean (free from interference) spectrum of radio frequencies to new radio frequency services and infrastructures in Cyprus.

The existing system installed in 2008 is now considered technically exhausted after 12 years of operation, but also outdated since it does not cover new technologies and emission standards mainly of new digital technologies.

The cost of the new advanced system, including ten years of maintenance, is estimated at €9m.

The new monitoring system for all radio broadcasts will consist of four existing fixed monitoring stations, which will be upgraded with new antennas, computer systems and software, while another one will be added, i.e. there will be a total of five ground stations that will have infrastructure when necessary and will also be staffed, i.e. staffed.

The system will also have two mobile surveillance stations, one in a 4X4 SUV and one in a 4X4 VAN vehicle.

Under the microscope radio transmitters 24 hours a day

All stations will be connected 24 hours a day to the Management and Supervision Center at the offices of the Department of Electronic Communications, which will be modernized with new sophisticated systems for recording data, detecting violations and illegalities or interference.

The system will be able to accurately detect a building or neighbourhood anywhere in Cyprus if there is a source of radio broadcasts.

In the four existing stations (Koroni, Endealos, Kakomallis, Dense), as well as in the new one to be built northwest of Cyprus, monitoring and radio angle measurement equipment will be installed, so that the operator can quickly identify and detect the emission from any source.

Mobile stations will also be able to detect emissions and their parameters even in motion, i.e. while the vehicle will be moving on and off roads, and will even be able to detect relatively low emission sources. They will perform all these functions and measurements, which cannot be performed by fixed stations either because of the morphology of the ground or because of low signal emission power.

The operator over the network will use these computers to perform the required measurements of user detection, frequency and spectrum, signal parameter measurement, real-time signal analysis, radio cornering, triangulation and position detection of the emission reflected in digital maps, analysis, recognition, signal deformation, signal evaluation, analog and digital audio recording.

Tv signals will also be de-coded, TV signal parameters analysed and the data obtained from the measurements will be automatically compared with the licensed broadcast data.

This means that, inter alia, a radio, television and other radio transmitter, e.g. mobile telephony, broadcasting with a power beyond the approved one, will be detected immediately.

The new system will also be able to analyse digital signals in real time to detect interference from analogue to digital broadcasts as well as signal processing of recent and new technologies.

The maps, on fixed and laptop screens, will depict at least 1,500 km around Cyprus in all directions, so that operators immediately know the emission source inside and outside Cyprus.

Emission technologies recognised and analysed by the new system include the identification of signal quality indicators in broadband broadcasts, including those via 4G, 5G, Bluetooth, TETRA, Wi-Fi, etc. networks with automatic decoding procedures for these signals.

On-board units

The self-propelled units will be two and one will be installed on a VAN vehicle with four-wheel drive while for reasons of greater safety and stability, the rear axle will have dual wheels.

The second will be suv type (or double-car), also with four-wheel drive. They will, among other things, make measurements of ten different parameters in 5G emissions.

Already, according to information from "F", interest has been shown by the largest international companies that manufacture such equipment, and it should be noted that the Department of Electronic Communications asks that the system be delivered by turnkey, with single equipment, in which case basic equipment and software from different companies (puzzle type) are discarded.

Special strict provisions are provided for both station security and the whole system, even in the event of cyber attacks.

With special provision, the Department of Electronic Communications makes it clear that it is "not interested in de-forming or decoding military applications or military communications or encrypted communications" and the contractor should take such measures that the algorithms it will introduce into the system, either initially or in the future, do not involve military applications.