The mass explosions of personal trackers in Lebanon claimed several fatalities among members of the Islamist terrorist organization Hizbollah.
However, the attack has also managed to hit Hizbollah's self-confidence. The attack shows that one can infiltrate and access the organization's devices.
If you can strike an organization in this way, using its own resources, you paralyze it and its ability to communicate. It's serious, regardless of how the attacker went about it, says Hans Liwång.
Possible Explosive
However, experts who have spoken to TT question whether the energy in the personal trackers' batteries is sufficient to cause severe explosive damage.
Explosives expert, Professor Bo Janzon at the Defence Research Establishment, believes that much suggests that someone has managed to place explosives in the personal trackers.
If you have a lithium battery and then have an explosive that is in contact with the battery, you can cause a short circuit that can cause the violent reaction, says Janzon, who believes that a single gram of explosive may be enough.
He says he is not aware of any experiments having been conducted with explosives in personal trackers.
It's also possible that more explosives were added. Maybe ten grams, but that's quite a lot, says Janzon, who notes that the injuries can be very severe since many people wear personal trackers on their belts or close to their bodies.
But too much explosive would likely be detected, for example, at an airport security check.
Manipulated Delivery
Liwång at FHS also questions whether the personal tracker's lithium battery alone can cause the explosion.
Theoretically, it's possible that the energy in these kinds of trackers, with a small lithium battery, can cause a small explosion, says Liwång.
The possibilities of manipulating personal trackers increase if one can access a delivery of trackers, according to Liwång and other security experts in the private sector who have spoken to TT. However, even such a procedure is accompanied by question marks.
If they are physically manipulated, it provides more opportunities – but they are also limited. There's something more to this story that we don't know, says Liwång.
