This is how the ICOM IC-V82 radio became an invisible bomb in the heart of Hezbollah

According to the Lebanese Ministry of Health, at least nine people have died and more than 300 have been injured as a result of the second wave of localized explosions, a figure that could rise over the hours; they are in addition to the 12 dead and 2,800 injured resulting from the initial attack by the researchers. Although the explosions are not particularly powerful, they are enough to cause fatal injuriesespecially if the user had the device stored near vital organs, as well as fires.

What is shocking is that this is not a repeat of the “research” explosions; the government has actually asked the population to get rid of these devices. What is really shocking about this situation is that on this occasion, different devices exploded; even worse, the variety of devices seems to be greater. Walkie-talkies and personal radios seem to be the new targets, but there are also reports that speak of devices that have nothing to do with personal communications, such as fingerprint readers or solar charging systems.

Fear of technology

It is difficult to distinguish this information from the general panic in Lebanon and the fear of technology behind these explosions. The big question is what will explode next. Cell phones? Computers? Car radios? Maybe this is the end of the operation, or maybe it’s just the beginning. Nobody knows.

The first information did not eliminate this fear. Perhaps unintentionally, Hezbollah representatives attributed incredible capabilities to their enemy, trying to explain how the “searchers” had exploded. There was talk of an attack by hackers, who would have taken control of the servers to send an encrypted message to the pagers, causing the battery to explode. These statements triggered a craze, with searches for “wanted” in Spain in the last 24 hours, according to Google Trends.

The most recent analysis of the remains of the devices has ruled out this type of attack, in favor of a more basic, but at the same time more intelligent one. All the search engines that have exploded They were part of the same shipmentwhich would have been intercepted by those responsible for the attack; The ‘pagers’ would have been modified with a plate capable of receiving messages and being activated with a code, which would have caused the explosion, either of the battery or of a small explosive included.

But the “pagers” would not be the only devices to be delivered in the same order. Sources of Reuters confirmed that the second wave devices, radios and walkie-talkies, were purchased by the Hezbollah group at the same time as you “look for” themand so it makes sense that they were compromised in the same way.

Radios turned into bombs

Photographs published on social networks show the remains of devices from the ICOM brand, a Japanese manufacturer specializing in radio and telephone communications. However, the IC-V82 model, which seems to be the main one concerned, Production ended years ago. This means that there is no easy way to obtain hundreds or thousands of units of the device, much less directly from the manufacturer.

There are two possibilities as to how Hezbollah obtained such old and abandoned devices. On the one hand, the radios obtained by Hezbollah may have been “stock” units, which could have remained in warehouses for at least a decade until they are sold. But what is more interesting is the explanation that these “obsolete” devices continue to be manufactured, sometimes illegally.

This is not a crazy theory, and in fact, this is exactly what happened with the pagers. All the devices that exploded yesterday were all the same model, the AP924 from Taiwanese manufacturer Gold Apollo; however, the company released a statement clarifying that is not responsible for the manufacturing of these devices.

According to Gold Apollo, although the pagers bore its brand name and were marked “Made in Taiwan,” they were actually manufactured in Europe by a subcontractor in Hungary. Around 5,000 “buggers” were reportedly produced and sent directly to Lebanon; The company acknowledged that the devices did not contain original components, but were “obtained from third parties.”

This would explain how the devices were modified; instead of intercepting the shipment during transport, the installation of the plate and a possible explosive would have been manufactured directly in the factory. In the statements to The New York TimesThe Hungarian government has distanced itself from this possibility, saying that the alleged manufacturer is registered as a “commercial intermediary” with no factories or operational sites in Hungary.

“Zombie brands” that live off Hezbollah

Although they are not as popular as they once were, pagers, radios and walkie-talkies are still in production and can be purchased from online stores; however, fans tend to be wary of products that They pretend to be classic modelsor who use brands that haven’t launched a new product for years.

These types of “zombie brands” are becoming increasingly common. The technology market is different from others because it is constantly evolving, forcing companies to evolve with it. This can involve changing the logo, product design or even the business sector. Sometimes it means abandoning one type of product altogether to focus on a completely new one, in the same way that Nokia abandoned “brick” mobile phones and moved to smartphones.

However, demand for older products never completely disappears, although it is usually not enough to justify the investment of the original company. That’s where manufacturers come in. fake or imitation brandswho continue to produce the product, most of the time without the permission of the original creators.

This appears to be the case with the radios that exploded in Lebanon. Among the photos posted on social media, there is one that shows the model number of the device, IC-V82, and its production date: July 2022. This shows that These devices are not originalsince ICOM ended production of the IC-V82 in 2008 and discontinued it in the late 2000s. Therefore, everything indicates that the manufacturer of the devices that exploded is one of those fake brands that may be using the same design copied from the original model.

While these fake brands may be the salvation of many users who rely on a specific type of device that is no longer manufactured (such as pagers), they have also been the salvation, and now the bane, of Hezbollah.

The members of the group They avoid using modern smartphones at all costs.s, because they fear its geolocation capabilities; if hacked, their own cell phone can indicate the exact location they are in, making a targeted attack much easier.

This fear of modern technology has led Hezbollah members to rely on technology that is now considered “obsolete” and “outdated”, but which continues to fulfill its function. In the case of pagers, the user can receive a notification that they should call a specific number with a nearby phone. And walkie-talkies and radios offer direct and relatively reliable communication, as long as you are within range.