On May 6, 2025, a nationwide outage of the BOS digital radio system (Public Safety Authorities and Organizations (known in German as BOS – Behörden und Organisationen mit Sicherheitsaufgaben)) affected police, fire services, and emergency medical responders across parts of Germany, including Bremen, Brandenburg, Hamburg, Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, Saarland, and Thuringia. The disruption lasted around two hours and impacted numerous base stations and control centers. The cause was identified as a technical network issue, which has since been resolved. Emergency numbers for police and fire services remained accessible throughout, as they operate via a separate, unaffected system. The BOS digital radio system covers 99.2% of Germany’s territory with more than 5,000 base stations.
According to the Federal Agency for Public Safety Digital Radio (BDBOS), there was no indication of a cyberattack. Emergency services had to temporarily rely on alternative communication methods. The incident highlights the vulnerability of digital infrastructure within public safety operations when dependent on monopoly solutions – and emphasizes the need for robust redundancy systems in civil protection, as reliable communication is one of today’s most critical operational tools.
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