The AT-Alert warning system of the province of Vienna is based on the u.warn solution from Utimaco

After an extensive test phase, the u.warn solution will be put into operation as the control center of the warning system of the Austrian capital on October 5 at the start of the Austria-wide Civil Protection Week. Vienna is thus relying on a solution that integrates cell broadcast and sirens, among other things, to warn citizens in the event of natural disasters and emergencies.

Aachen, October 1, 2024 - Utimaco, a leading global provider of IT security solutions and population warning systems, announces that the Federal State of Vienna has implemented Utimaco's u.warn solution module Command Post as a Cell Broadcast Entity (CBE) to manage and control the dissemination of early warnings in Vienna.

The importance of direct and prompt communication with citizens in an emergency was recently demonstrated during the flood situation in Austria in mid-September. With the AT-Alert warning system, people in a region affected by an emergency can now be warned and informed directly via their mobile devices without having to register or install an app beforehand.

This is made possible in Vienna by the u.warn public warning solution from Utimaco. u.warn is a product suite for authorities, companies and other organizations that require a mass communication system for emergencies. The solution adapts to the different needs of individual organizations and supports a variety of other transmission channels in addition to cell broadcast, such as sirens, display boards, apps, radio, satellite systems and social media. The respective warning mix can be selected flexibly and adapted to the situation at hand.

The AT-Alert solution and associated services stand out:

• Location-based warnings in real time
• Function even with overloaded networks 
• Does not require any network resources
• Does not require mobile data
• Citizens do not have to make any downloads or activations 
• Complete geo-redundancy 
• Compatible with all network standards (5G, 4G, 3G and 2G)
• Support for a variety of transmission paths
• Supports all RAN and connection network providers

Stefan Auerbach, CEO of Utimaco, says: 

"Our Public Warning System has been helping to increase public safety and create trust among citizens for many years and in many countries around the world. We are delighted that the City of Vienna has opted for our solution and that we can support the authorities in managing crises and emergencies such as the floods in the best possible way to protect the Austrian population."

Josef Kneisl, Municipal Directorate of the City of Vienna, Deputy Head of the Crisis Management and Security Group: 

"It is important for the City of Vienna to not only forward warnings about upcoming critical events via one warning channel, but to share them on several channels. Utimaco's system proved to be an efficient solution in the bidding process. Utimaco's system ensures that the population of Vienna has an efficient and expandable warning system at its disposal."