Producer
Digital Alert Systems (DASDEC)
Digital Alert Systems (Newark NY; now part of Monroe Electronics) is the maker of DASDEC (Digital Alert Systems ENDEC) — the most widely deployed EAS encoder/decoder at US broadcast radio and television stations. The DASDEC-II is a Linux-based IP-connected EAS device that receives EAS alerts via multiple input paths (RF broadcast, internet/IPAWS CAP feeds, EAS daisy-chain), authenticates and decodes the alert, and retransmits via broadcast output. Nearly all major US broadcast networks and their affiliate stations (NBC, CBS, ABC, FOX local affiliates, iHeart Radio) use DASDEC-II or DASDEC-1+. Digital Alert Systems was acquired by Monroe Electronics; the DASDEC product line continues under the Digital Alert Systems brand. The DASDEC platform has had multiple security vulnerabilities disclosed (CVE-2013-0225, CVE-2014-0351) — both related to its Linux-based software stack and internet connectivity.
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The company's full revenue map, where this supply-chain role fits within their broader business.
DASDEC-II EAS ENDEC Hardware
60%DASDEC Legacy & Upgrade
25%One-Net Platform
15%
Intelligence
What's known
Sourced claims about this company's role in supply chains, chokepoints, concentration, incidents, dual-use connections.
Did you know2022
DASDEC is an EAS hardware platform used for routine weather and civil emergency alerts (the standard use case at broadcasters), but the exact same hardware and firmware also handles the Presidential Alert category — the highest priority EAS code, reserved for existential national emergencies including nuclear attack. The 2013 zombie apocalypse fake alert and 2017 DASDEC vulnerability disclosures demonstrated that the same Linux-based IP-connected device handling AMBER alerts and tornado warnings is equally the vector through which a cyberattack could disrupt or spoof a Presidential nuclear attack warning. The public emergency communications supply chain and the national security emergency communications supply chain share the same DASDEC hardware and its historically underpatched Linux firmware.
Nozomi Networks ↗Origin2023
Digital Alert Systems was a Newark, New York company that developed the DASDEC (Digital Alert Systems ENDEC) as a Linux-based EAS encoder/decoder with IP network capabilities — enabling broadcasters to receive and relay EAS alerts over IP networks rather than relying solely on audio tone detection from FM sidebands. This network-connected architecture made the DASDEC more flexible and manageable than legacy dedicated-hardware EAS units, but also introduced cybersecurity vulnerabilities: in 2013, hackers exploited a DASDEC vulnerability to broadcast fake zombie apocalypse alerts on several Montana TV stations, demonstrating that emergency alert infrastructure was Internet-accessible and inadequately secured. DASDEC was subsequently acquired by Monroe Electronics.
Digital Alert Systems / Monroe Electronics ↗Incident2013
The DASDEC EAS encoder/decoder platform (made by Digital Alert Systems, now Monroe Electronics) has had multiple CVEs (Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures) assigned against its software stack. CVE-2013-0225 documented a default-credential vulnerability exploited in the February 2013 Montana/Michigan EAS hack (fake zombie apocalypse alert). CVE-2014-0351 documented a separate DASDEC vulnerability. CISA ICS Advisory ICSA-13-073-01 (March 2013) formally warned that DASDEC and One-Net EAS devices had 'an SSH server that is accessible from the Internet with a weak default password.' Monroe Electronics released firmware patches; however, CISA found that a significant portion of the US DASDEC installed base remained unpatched months after the advisory. The root cause: DASDEC is a Linux-based IP device deployed in unmanned broadcast transmitter buildings, often with IT support handled by broadcast engineers who are not cybersecurity specialists. IPAWS integration — which requires DASDEC to be internet-accessible to receive CAP alert feeds from FEMA — cannot be disabled without losing IPAWS functionality mandated by the FCC's EAS rules.
CISA ICS-CERT ↗