US State Department report: "Ground transmission stations for cellular communications are liable to be vulnerable to Y2000 Bug-related breakdowns."
"Israel appears to be ready to tackle Y2000 Bug problems. However, a reasonable risk exists of breakdowns in key sectors in Israel, including telecommunications and electricity supply, due to Bug-related problems," states a US State Department report published yesterday.
The report is one of a series of reports on countries throughout the world that the US State Department publishes as a service to the American public. They aim to advise US citizens of the dangers attached to traveling to certain destinations. The report on Israel is largely based on reports from the US Embassy in Tel Aviv.
"Israel is one of the Middle East's major users of information technologies, and is the region's leader in cellular telephone usage," the report states. "Ground transmission stations for cellular communications are liable to be vulnerable to Y2000 Bug-related breakdowns."
The report further determines that in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip a reasonable danger also exists in potential breakdowns in key sectors, including telecommunications and electricity supply. The report notes that basic services in Palestinian Authority territories are dependent on Israeli systems, and are liable to be exposed to potential failures that are liable to damage Israeli systems and affect Israeli citizens.
Published by Israel's Business Arena on September 15, 1999