Name of the Spacecraft/system | Date of the Event | Consequence | Notes/Details | Sources |
Palapa B1, Gorizont 17 | -1993 | Temporary failures and International dispute resolved by ITU | The Indonesian and Tonga satellite operators have had a dispute over the use of a specific orbital slot placed GEO above New Guinea by the Tonga communications satellite Gorizont 17. At the same time Indonesia had its communication satellite Palapa B1 in the same orbit. The orbital slot was under contention due to potential interference as both states threatened to jam the other’s transmissions from the orbit. This is the first public record of a state threatening digital counterspace operations against another state’s assets. The dispute has been resolved by ITU in favor of Tonga. | https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1993-09-20-mn-37280-story.html |
MED-TV satellite channel | 1996 - 1999 | Service interruptions | Kurdish satellite channel MED-TV operating on the EUTELSAT platform was intentionally jammed by Turkish security forces as accused of spreading terrorist propaganda. Government repression event. | N. Boustany, “Kurdish TV Gets Static from Turks,” Washington Post, 1998-11-25T12:00-500, ISSN: 0190-8286. [Online]. Available: https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1998/11/25/kurdish-tv-gets-static-from-turks/f41ee658-8258-495a-bc78-b644c2bcf56d/ |
APSTAR-1A | 6/19/05 | Service interruption | Indonesian satellite Palapa B1 transmitted interference to jam Chinese APSTAR-1A due to its use of a disputed orbital slot. | Wilson, Wong, & Fergusson, James Gordon. Military Space Power: A Guide to the Issues ABC-CLIO, 2010 p.135 https://books.google.is/books?id=GFg5CqCojqQC&lpg=PA135&ots=mFiIXVDs5Y&dq=APSTAR-1A%20jamming&hl=it&pg=PA135#v=onepage&q=APSTAR-1A%20jamming&f=false |
Telstar 12 | -2003 | Service interruptions | In 2003 the Cuban government was accused of deliberately jamming US signals for the Voice of America station which were being broadcast to Iran, perhaps on behalf of the Iranian government and probably with communications gear supplied by China. | http://www.latinamericanstudies.org/cuba/cuba-jamming-03.htm https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2003-jul-17-me-irantv17-story.html |
Several satellite broadcast channels | 19 September 2005 | Service interruptions | In 2005 the Libyan government was accused of jamming telecommunications satellites which impacted both European television stations and government communications. "British and US diplomats have protested to the Libyan government after two international satellites were illegally jammed, knocking off air dozens of TV and radio stations serving Britain and Europe and disrupting American diplomatic, military and FBI communications. | https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2005/dec/03/politics.libya |
| | | Among stations hit were digital broadcasts by Five, BBC World, CNN International, US sports channels, cable TV networks and 23 radio stations. " | |
Al-Hiwar satellite station broadcast | May 2009 | Service interruption | In May of 2009 the Al-Hiwar satellite station broadcast from the United Kingdom was jammed. The attacker has not been conclusively identified but the Egyptian government is strongly suspected. Government repression event. | There are no longer any sources accessible on the web, but the event happened. |
Western satellite broadcast channels on Iranian territory | -2010 | Service interruptions | The BBC, Deutsche Welle and Voice of America satellite broadcasts jamming on Iranian territory began as Iran marked the 31st anniversary of the Islamic Revolution. | http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8579719.stm |
Al-Jazeera TV broadcast in Middle East and North Africa | 12 June 2010 | Service interruption | In 2010 Jordan was accused of jamming Al-Jazeera satellite television feeds including some which broadcasted the World Cup in many countries of the Middle East and some areas of North Africa. | https://www.theguardian.com/media/2010/sep/29/al-jazeera-world-cup-jordan |
GPS signals on South Korea | 28 April - 6 May 2012 | Service interruptions | A total of 553 aircraft on route to and from Incheon and Gimpo (South Korea’s two main gateways) reported a failure with their GPS signals between April 28 and May 6. The Transport Ministry said it has traced the jamming signals to the direction of the North Korean border city of Kaesong. | http://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20120508001326 |
| | | More than 120 ships, boats and passenger liners off the West Sea, as well as two fishing fleets on the eastern shore, also saw their signals jammed. | |
| | | No accident has been reported. All the flights operated normally by using substitute course-plotting devices such as very-high-frequency omni-directional radio range or inertial navigation systems. | |
| | | Since the tracing of the jamming signals led to the southern North Korean border, North Korea is strongly suspected to be the attacker. | |
LuaLua TV broadcast station | 12 August 2011 | Service interruption | A Bahraini opposition station called LuaLua TV was jammed within 5 hours of its first broadcast over a Eutelsat transponder. The jamming was located by Eutelsat as coming from Bahrain itself. Government repression event. | https://thenextweb.com/news/bahrain-satellite-channel-jammed-launches-on-livestation-instead |
Ethiopian Satellite Television (ESAT) and international broadcast channels in Ethiopia | 2010 - 2011 | Service interruption | Ethiopian Satellite Television (an anti-regime satellite television channel) was jammed by the Ethiopian government in 2010 (and several times in the following months). Some sources suggest that the equipment and technology for these attacks was provided by Chinese government officials, but there are no sure proofs. Government repression event. | https://ecadforum.com/2011/06/30/china-accused-of-jamming-tv-websites-in-ethiopia-computerworld-reported/ |
Eritrean broadcast channels (ARABSAT platform) | -2012 | Service interruptions | The Ethiopian government is suspected of jamming Eritrean satellite communications signals on ARABSAT | https://shabait.com/2012/01/10/source-of-jamming-against-eritrean-satellite-broadcast-confirmed-to-be-ethiopia/ |
| | | platforms starting in 2012 (and several times thereafter). | |
US and European broadcast channels across Europe and Middle East | Late 2012 | Service interruptions | Major US and European broadcasters are charging that deliberate electronic interference, known as jamming, that has intermittently disrupted satellite signals across Europe and the Middle East since the start of this week is emanating from Syria. | https://www.usagm.gov/2012/10/19/us-european-broadcasters-condemn-jamming-from-syria/ |
| | | The jamming has hit satellites operated by Eutelsat, a European satellite operator, affecting TV and radio programs reaching millions of households. The Paris-based Eutelsat confirmed that the disruptive signals originate from Syria. | |
Al-Jazeera across Egypt | Summer 2013 | Service interruptions | The Egyptian government was accused of jamming Al Jazeera satellite broadcasts during instability in 2013. | https://www.theguardian.com/media/2013/sep/02/egypt-accused-jamming-al-jazeera |
Thaicom broadcast satellite | 2014. | Service interruptions | Thailand government television stations were repeatedly jammed in 2014 during a series of government protestors. The attacker was no identified but it is believed to have been the protestors. | https://advanced-television.com/2014/01/20/thailand-suffers-satellite-jamming/ |
Finnish and Norwegian GPS signals during military exercises | 2018. | GPS service interruptions | Russia is accused of having jammed GPS signals across Norway and Finland to disrupt ongoing NATO war games in the region. The jamming attacks also impacted commercial aviation systems. | https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-46178940 |