The mystery is further complicated as there are still questions about who built the blasters and how they managed to detonate about 5,000 blasters at once.
There are currently two main theories about how the explosions happened. The first theory states that explosives and a remote detonation system (detonator) were implanted in the buzzers before they reached the hands of Hezbollah members. This theory, according to experts who spoke to the BBC and the New York Times, is the most likely.
The second theory is that a breach was achieved in the buzzers’ software when they were connected to a local telecommunications network to operate, and this breach allowed a function to be implanted in the software that caused the buzzers’ lithium-ion batteries to overheat and explode, as it has find out how overheating of their lithium-ion batteries causes them to explode. This is due to a phenomenon called thermal escape.
Thermal runaway is a chemical chain reaction that occurs when the battery experiences a rapid temperature change, which is triggered when the battery is overheated, punctured, or overcharged. As this chemical reaction progresses, it can lead to a sudden release of energy that can cause devices to explode with intense force and heat. In thermal runaway, the temperature of the battery rises rapidly (in milliseconds) and the chain reaction of the stored battery energy creates extremely high temperatures (around 752 degrees Fahrenheit / 400 degrees Celsius – the temperature of a typical fire room).
So according to expert research so far, it is likely that someone could have hacked these devices and remotely overcharged the battery, causing a thermal runaway. Message-only buzzers are passive receivers and therefore cannot be detected, but when a buzzer sends a message it activates telecommunications networks and transmitters in the area where the buzzer is located.
If someone can infiltrate the network at the moment a signal is being transmitted, they could infect every buzzer in the network with malware. A virus could have been planted in Hezbollah’s paging network and lay dormant in the devices until it spread widely. This malware may have been activated remotely with the help of a pre-programmed timer.
Footage from cameras at blast sites shows the owners of the blasted buzzers appeared to receive a message moments before the devices exploded.
If these explosions are the product of a cyberattack, then this is a unique attack of its kind and scope.
THIS IS CRAZY!
Israeli Intelligence (Mossad) is responsible for KILLING at least 8 people in Lebanon, including children, as well as INJURING OVER 2750 other Hezbollah fighters by way of hacking their pagers & mobile devices causing them to EXPLODE in a MASSIVE targeted… pic.twitter.com/pToLuoVX1o
— The Patriot Voice (@TPV_John) September 17, 2024
Why Hezbollah doesn’t use cell phones
“Israel no longer needs partners,” said Hassan Nasrallah. “Tracking devices are in your pockets. If you are looking for the Israeli agent, look at the phone in the hands of you and your wives and children.” Nasrallah knew that mobile devices send signals to commercial cell phone towers, which can be easily intercepted.
Hezbollah was quick to protect its military network by providing members with special pagers, which used a system that was more difficult to crack. And he certainly never imagined that Israeli agents would be able to penetrate their supply chain for the pagers. But that’s exactly what appears to have happened, US cyber experts said. Hezbollah sent a telling message late Tuesday to its operatives: “Anyone who received a new pager should throw it away immediately,” according to a source cited by The Post.
#buzzers #Lebanon #thermal #runaway #blame
