by Nina Vaclavikova
A series of bomb threats sent by email to schools across Italy on Nov. 11 and 12, prompting evacuations at several institutions in Trieste and elsewhere, has raised questions about public safety, digital security and the growing ease of spreading false alarms.
But the incidents should not necessarily be classified as cyberattacks, said Professor Alberto Bartoli, who cautioned against drawing premature conclusions about the nature or intentions behind the threats.
“The information systems of the targeted schools have not been affected in any way,” Bartoli said. “These were warnings, or alarms, whose apparent purpose was to create panic, insecurity and concern.”
The increasing accessibility of digital communication has made it easier and less expensive to spread false warnings on a large scale, he said. However, determining whether the threats represent a genuine security risk remains difficult.
“I don’t have any concrete evidence to say whether there is a real danger or not,” Bartoli said, adding that understanding the motives behind such incidents may require specialized expertise.
He also warned against dismissing the messages because of their apparent lack of sophistication. Some of the emails contained numerous grammatical and spelling errors, but that alone should not be taken as evidence that the threats are insignificant.
“Perhaps those mistakes were intentional, designed to make people believe that the messages were not credible,” he said.
Bartoli urged the public and authorities to avoid superficial assessments, emphasizing that the incidents require careful examination by specialists.
“People should not judge these events superficially,” he said. “Experts need to assess the situation, and that is not going to be easy.”
