Student indicted over false alarm that halted high-speed rail trains

Taoyuan, Oct. 7 (CNA) Prosecutors on Wednesday indicted a university student accused of accessing Taiwan High Speed Rail's radio communications system and sending a false alarm that prompted four trains to make emergency stops in April.

The Taoyuan District Prosecutors Office sought a two-year prison sentence for the student, surnamed Lin (林). A second man, surnamed Chen (陳), was indicted for allegedly helping him access the system.

According to prosecutors, Lin used a radio programmed with the system's parameters to access its TETRA communications network -- a digital radio standard used by railways and emergency services -- at Taoyuan High Speed Rail Station at 10:27 p.m. on April 5.

At 11:23 p.m. that day, while aboard a bus near Taichung High Speed Rail Station, he allegedly transmitted a "General Alarm" signal.

The operations control system automatically relayed the warning to nearby trains, prompting the drivers of three passenger trains and one out-of-service train to manually apply their emergency brakes.

The incident caused delays totaling 48 minutes, prosecutors said.

After receiving a report from railway police on April 13, investigators searched three locations associated with Lin on April 28, seizing radio equipment and electronic devices.

Chen allegedly supplied the radio and the system parameters, but prosecutors found no evidence that he knew Lin intended to transmit the alarm.

Lin faces charges under the Railway Act for allegedly exploiting vulnerabilities in a critical railway communications system and disrupting its operation.

Chen was charged under the Criminal Code with helping Lin gain unauthorized access to the railway's communications system by exploiting a vulnerability.

Prosecutors said Lin acted out of curiosity about radio technology and that his actions disrupted railway operations and affected passengers' rights.