Until the early 2000s, Customs operated its own radio network to manage communications with its officials in the field, but the coverage of this network was limited and did not meet the operational demands of an organization numbering 7,000 uniformed officials split between 200 surveillance units, including canine and motorcycle teams. Yet the large number of “white zones” with no coverage, the problem of obsolescence and the cost of maintaining this network prompted a decision to dismantle it.

Customs then opted for mobile networks, and all of its uniformed officials were provided with smartphones. While this meant improvements in terms of geographical coverage, it was not a tailored solution as such, since although these networks facilitated long-range communications and the exchange of data (particularly for geolocation purposes), they did so only in a limited fashion. Customs then considered a migration to the Tetrapol network used by law enforcement agencies, but technical constraints meant that this project met a premature end.

In 2020, Customs then made the key strategic decision to opt for Agnet, which is an over-the-top best-effort application developed by Airbus SLC that does not use a proprietary network but instead leverages the network coverage of 3G/4G telephony operators (in this context, “best effort” means that the data are routed by the operators as efficiently as possible using the resources available, but without providing any guarantee of quality).

The switch to Agnet has made it possible to optimize and secure operations in the field by providing officials with a modern, secure and standardized means of communication. The application allows users to make calls and share video, audio and image files. Teams can also be mapped and located, making it possible to direct and support them more effectively and without any delays, and the teams themselves can log real-time alerts with their operational HQ while in the field.

Agnet was rolled out in stages following a successful pilot scheme between October 2020 and June 2021, which made it possible to pinpoint needs and produce a customized usage policy. A key development involved providing the motorcycle teams with helmets and vehicles specially adapted for Agnet use. Once this step had been completed, the application was rolled out to all of the surveillance units in mainland France, and training was provided on the basis of a cascade model, supplemented by more specialized, job-specific training. In total, 12 country-level trainers and 650 ambassadors helped to train 4,500 officials between September 2021 and June 2022; the application is still being rolled out to the overseas departments and the coastguard.

French Customs is now planning to join the community of Radio Network of the Future (RRF) users; this is a modern, secure and interoperable communications infrastructure backed by ACMOSS.

The RRF leverages the coverage of two national mobile operators, and offers service quality guarantees as well as prioritizing communications between RRF subscribers, commandeering the operators’ resources where necessary and providing access to other networks via national roaming. It has its own network operations centre (NOC) to safeguard continuity of communications, and its own backbone located at the Ministry of the Interior’s secure data centres.

Membership of this network (which is open to various rescue and emergency services including the fire brigade, the police, the gendarmerie and other emergency services) provides the following benefits:

• strengthened security of agents in the field, in an increasingly dangerous environment
• easy communications with other services as a basis for the improved coordination of responses and the optimization of crisis interventions;
• improved communications security thanks to cyber threat prevention mechanisms; the RRF has a security accreditation from the National Agency for the Security of Information Systems (ANSSI) and is continually monitored by the Ministry of the Interior’s Cyber Defence Centre;
• extensive coverage and alternative coverage arrangements to ensure uninterrupted communications, even in a crisis (network resilience in the event of an incident, natural disaster or attack).

With a view to delivering the last of these benefits, ACMOSS is planning to incorporate satellite communications into the RRF model in order to extend its coverage, particularly in remote areas and overseas territories; it is also investigating the use of high-altitude platforms (HAPs), which are aircraft situated at an altitude of several kilometres that provide services – relating predominantly to communication and observation – over a wide area of land.

ACMOSS is also actively involved in cooperation at European level through the BroadEU.Net project, which is working to support the establishment of a European system (EUCCS) linking the national communication networks used by the national agencies responsible for critical missions. The aim pursued by ACMOSS in this regard is to connect the RRF to the EUCCS and to play a part in the integration and interoperability efforts, with a view to guaranteeing secure and reliable communications throughout Europe.

The success of the RRF will depend on the willingness of the stakeholders involved to cooperate effectively and overcome the challenges involved in transitioning to a new communications system. The changeover to the RRF is not a straightforward process for Customs, since the functions available to officials, and in particular to motorcycle teams, need to be migrated while maintaining continuity of service. The scheduled pilot phase will serve as an opportunity to prepare for and verify the migration process, and also to train the officials working within operational HQs and units.

The challenges are not insignificant, but the game is worth the candle. The RRF is a key project for modernizing the communication systems used by the security and emergency services in France that will provide French Customs with a modern, secure and resilient communications infrastructure as a basis for further improvements to the coordination, effectiveness and security of response efforts.

More information
https://www.acmoss.fr/