Probably not. It was almost certainly the case that these pagers were already connected to explosives, probably to be IEDs. All Israel would have had to do is page the pagers to detonate them. I can’t think of any other logical explanation.
Comment on Lebanon’s health minister says 8 killed, 2,750 wounded by exploding pagers
Zer0_F0x@lemmy.world 2 days ago
Damn. This must be one of the most terrifying cyber attacks of all time. Like, Mr. Robot level of breach and execution. In that show they rig the UPS batteries of server buildings to blow up, this is basically the same idea on a smaller scale. Either that, or they compromised the manufacturer of the pagers and put small explosive devices in there. Truly legendary and insane.
EncryptKeeper@lemmy.world 2 days ago
peopleproblems@lemmy.world 2 days ago
I don’t think the thousands of pagers built this way really count as “improvised.”
That being said, it makes me wonder if this went in any way according to plan - 8 deaths and 2750 injuries is a large scale attack, don’t get me wrong. But they’ve now announced Mossad has compromised the supplier of the pager, which they will undoubtedly audit, and instill new policies on device security. I wouldn’t be surprised if that means they discover a lot more compromised electronics, allowing Hezbollah to pinpoint the compromise. Because 2750 survived, you now have 2750 people very interested in finding it.
In all, for 8 deaths, they’ve made their own work harder.
That being said 2750 injuries could be a large enough number to scare members out of the org.
jwt@programming.dev 2 days ago
I heard they recently switched to pagers because cell phones where deemed to be compromised. So I think besides the direct deaths and injuries, this attack also targeted lines of communication and trust in technology as a whole (or anything supplied by your superior even).
peopleproblems@lemmy.world 2 days ago
Yeah, that’s what I read too. It’s a smart way to force the weaponized pagers into the hands of your enemies.
Also sort of shows the attack wasn’t too sophisticated. Mossad might not even have compromised the cell phones, they just fed bad intelligence to whoever and they had a likely supplier already compromised.
In all - it doesn’t look too good for any intelligence personnel in Hezbollah.
kent_eh@lemmy.ca 1 day ago
besides the direct deaths and injuries, this attack also targeted lines of communication and trust
Exactly. The psychological impact of this attack should not be underestimated.
It will have Hamas’ leadership and operatives second guessing so many of the mundane things that they interact with on a daily basis.
PyroNeurosis@lemmy.blahaj.zone 1 day ago
Im more surprised that Hezbollah issues them. I’d thought pagers were cheap enough as consumer items that they’d just give their guy a wad of cash and say go pick up such and such pager for me.
Would have at least severely hampered any precision from man-in-the-middle attacks on supply lines such as these. Especially when being embedded within a civilian city.
Scolding7300@lemmy.world 2 days ago
If those pagers had explosives, I wonder if the explosives were put there as a sabotage or for “destroy if found” functionality
EncryptKeeper@lemmy.world 2 days ago
Perhaps the latter? My first thought is still that the pagers intended use was for triggering explosives, and they were simply triggered early by the other side.
Eheran@lemmy.world 1 day ago
You would not put it inside the pager if you want to use it as a trigger. You would also not ready-make thousands of those and let thousands of people carry them around.
Anon819450514@lemmy.ca 2 days ago
More like stuxnet level !
Doorbook@lemmy.world 2 days ago
I am surprised the name of the manufacture is not out. This basically raise privacy concern.
JoeKrogan@lemmy.world 1 day ago
Its stuxnet like
LostSole@lemmy.world 1 day ago
cyber attack ? Lol
naturlychee@lemm.ee 2 days ago
no way it was just the batteries.
batteries burn but don’t detonate with shrapnel
Nightwind@lemmy.world 2 days ago
Yeah they got into the supply route and added c4 to all those pagers. Makes me wonder how many pagers or smartphones have added explosives still.
cm0002@lemmy.world 2 days ago
Shrapnel, no, but Lithium-Ion does explode. Especially on a full charge
Ilovethebomb@lemm.ee 2 days ago
No way did lithium batteries kill eight people.
cm0002@lemmy.world 2 days ago
I did not say they did, but they can explode violently
https://youtu.be/8nz5ijXcckI
MangoPenguin@lemmy.blahaj.zone 2 days ago
They have over-pressure vents and will vent pretty violently and catch fire, but should not explode due to pressure build up.
cm0002@lemmy.world 2 days ago
They still explode in some cases. Plenty of clips of li-ion not just catching fire but exploding similar to how a firework might explode.
https://youtu.be/8nz5ijXcckI
rhandyrhoads@lemmy.world 21 hours ago
As someone who’s accidentally punctured a large lithium ion battery with 100% charge I can tell you that explode isn’t exactly the right word. While I’m sure you could create an enclosure that could explode from the pressure, the battery itself just kinda shoots out a small jet of fire along with some toxic gas.