Many mentions of a button being incorrectly pushed, however this is a computer system, not a manual system of breaking glass to push a button - which is so old school, it is almost obsolete.

In one of links, it says:

Miyagi, a retired Army two-star general, then explained that an individual on his team sent the alert in error, even clicking through a redundancy on a computer screen intended to act as a safeguard from such a mistake.

Rather then using the break glass analogy, (besides, who is going to put a computer system behind that setup) the computer program should require 2 person authentication instead of relying on a solo operator to make such a decision.

In other news, today Japan had the same type false alert, but it was stopped within minutes.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/japan-false-alarm-missile-north-korea-1.4489142

So the computer program in Hawaii, which is supposed to send the alerts is worse then thought. It is simply a link on a webpage (stunningly bad 1990's era design) and the operator clicked on the wrong link.

https://twitter.com/CivilBeat/status/953127542050795520

That is pretty rotten design. Not at all hard to mess up.

Looks like the user interface was not part of the requirement list or its not a finished system.

Strangle as it might sounds, a proper user interface can be forgotten when writen specifications...

Here is one near fatality due to the false alarm.

http://www.staradvertiser.com/2018/01/16...eea67a352459406

as far as the controls go - I actually like the "break-glass idea". There is too much "virtual world" stuff happening with computers. If the system required glass to be broken, and then automatically that set off red flashing lights and a warning horn (inside the control room) ... chances are you wouldn't have a lot of false alerts.

For the people on the street - they need a lot of tangible signs that a major emergency is taking place. Visual, audible, special vehicles or police ... the whole shebang. Maybe as a bare minimum, under a nuke emergency EVERY fire engine and emergency vehicle in Hawaii should activate its siren and its lights. All of that stuff going off together, will get across the message that something real is going down.

Maybe they just need some large bullhorn speakers, and a voice saying ... This is a nuclear alert! This is not a drill. Incoming warhead, seven minutes from impact!" Something like that - might get people's blood moving.

Pete

When a desktop USB toy has better protection against false alarms, than the actual alarm system...

https://www.thinkgeek.com/product/jujk/?srp=2

Take one of them, epoxy it to a PC.

how about the guy who's plan was to kill the folks next door for their stuff so he had a better chance to make it thru the attack?
"you know our plan jimmy you shoot old man smith and i'll do the jones house,bring back all you can carry to our shelter"
and don't think that's not someone's real doom day plan.
the kids they found chained up in that house is just the tip of the iceberg on how crazy the country is.
it's not how to make a fool proof warning system it's how people would react to it.

there are always crazies.
but you know what? - they will be held accountable.
I'm not sure why people figure that if "zombie days" suddenly arrive, then they can get away with anything. Truth is ... armed robbery is still armed robbery, murder is still murder. If you take a look at the bad stuff that happened in New Orleans (during the Katrina emergency), after the disaster - people were prosecuted. Victims remember, police make arrests.

There will always be a return of 'law and order'. That's what the crazies seem to forget.

In the unlikely event that Hawaii was really hit by a nuke, the US assistance response would be massive. There would be a lot of National Guard there - to deliver supplies, do evacuations, and enforce the law. There is no possibility that people will be forgotten ... it would be the other way around, IMO.

If delete prompt on a laptop can have a second pop up window to confirm if actually you want to delete, I am surprised why this that have the capabilities of causing havoc not have a second confirmation button...