In accordance with Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) Broadcasting Order 2009-340, issued June 11, 2009 and Broadcasting Order 2009-340-1, issued January 24, 2012, Pelmorex has established the National Alert Aggregation & Dissemination System (NAAD System), assisted by a Governance Council of public and private stakeholders.
The National Alert Aggregation & Dissemination System provides the technical infrastructure of Canada’s national public alerting system.
Pelmorex’s NAAD System collects public safety messages from authorized government authorities and distributes those messages by satellite and through the internet to broadcasting undertakings such as radio and television stations, cable and satellite TV companies, wireless service providers and other last mile distributors (LMDs). There is no charge by Pelmorex for these services.
This website hosts information and updates regarding the National Alert Aggregation & Dissemination System.
For more information on Canada’s national public alerting system, visit alertready.ca.
Resources
Resources for Last Mile distributors
Pelmorex has prepared technical information describing the features of the National Alert Aggregation & Dissemination (NAAD) System. It is intended to assist Last Mile Distributors so that they can pass on Public Safety Messages to the public.
- NAAD System – Last Mile Distributor Guide
- NAADS DSS Service usage (UPDATED on January 2019)
- National Public Alerting System – Common Look and Feel Guidance
- List of Event Codes for Broadcast Immediate Alerts (version 2.1)
- Public Alerting Bulletin to Last Mile Distributors
- National Tips for Text to Speech
- Canadian Alerting Attention Signal (MP3 format)
NAAD System Governance Council Update (summary for LMD)
- NAAD System Governance Council Update – October 8, 2019 Meeting
- NAAD System Governance Council Update – June 16, 2020 Meeting
- NAAD System Governance Council Update – October 1, 2020 Meeting
- NAAD System Governance Council Update – March 24, 2021 Meeting
- NAAD System Governance Council Update – October 13, 2021 Meeting
Policies and guidelines
NAAD System Rules
In consultation with Pelmorex’s Governance Council, Pelmorex has adopted certain policies and rules to govern the operation of the NAAD System. These are practical rules to encourage distribution by broadcasters and must be compliant with CAP/CAP-CP standards. The NAAD System rules are listed below:
- Test Message Policy – V 3.1
- Alert Message & Attachment Size Restrictions – V 2.0
- Compliance with CAP & CAP-CP Alerting Standards – V 2.0
- Alert Message Attachment Types – V 1.0
- Use of Digital Signatures by NAAD & AGA Systems – V 1.0
- 3rd Language Policy – V 1.0
- NAAD System Technical Notice on Digital Signatures
CAP-CP or Canadian Profile Rules
This second set of rules come from the Canadian Profile for CAP Standard, managed by a government body representing Senior Officials Representing Emergency Managers (SOREM). These rules must be compliant with CAP.
CAP Rules
Both above sets of rules are based on the Common Alerting Protocol (CAP) Standard. CAP provides an open, non-proprietary digital message format for all types of emergency alerts and notifications over all kinds of networks. The CAP specification is owned by OASIS.
The following is a list of CAP-CP/CAP Rules adopted by Pelmorex Governance Council for use in the NAAD System:
July 12, 2012 – CAP/CAP-CP Standards used by the NAAD System
- CAP CAP-CP Standards and SGC Codes Adopted
- CAP V1.2 pro3
- CAP V1.2 Schema
- CAP-CP Introduction & Rule Set Beta 0.4
- CAP-CP Location Reference Beta 0.3B
- CAP-CP Event References Beta 0.4
Environment Canada and the Common Alerting Protocol (CAP)
Environment Canada’s information sheets about the warnings in Common Alerting Protocol format (CAP) are available on the Meteorological Service of Canada’s HTTP data server.
Wireless Public Alerting
Wireless Service Providers (WSPs) make Alert Messages available to the public on WPA compatible devices connected to an LTE network. Alerts on mobile devices will warn Canadians about dangers to life and property so that they can take appropriate action.
The following documents provide Wireless Service Providers with information on how to connect to the NAAD System to receive alert messages intended for immediate wireless distribution on LTE networks in Canada:
- C-Interface Specification version 3.0 : This document defines the network and application level interface between the NAAD System and the Cell Broadcast Systems of the WSP.
- Canadian Wireless Public Alerting Service (WPAS) LTE Mobile Device Behavior Specification (ATIS-0700021)
Please contact us if you have any questions or if you need assistance in establishing a new connection to the NAAD System to distribute emergency alerts to your wireless subscribers.
NAAD System Tests Schedule
System Tests may be performed by Authorized Government Agencies (AGA) and Pelmorex to ensure public safety messages are received and submitted successfully, and that the NAAD System is available and operational at all times. The NAAD System supports two different ways of system testing.
- Test messages not intended for broadcast.
- Test messages intended for broadcast (This type of alerts could be Broadcast Intrusive or not).
For more details about the test message policy, please refer to this document.
All test messages scheduled for distribution to the public will be posted below. This test schedule is for those Public Awareness Tests conducted twice a year (1x in May, 1x in November) that require an immediate distribution on TV, radio and compatible wireless devices.
Note to LMD: After each broadcast test, please submit your completed checklist to the NAAD System Support Desk who will relay any issues to Pelmorex and/or the test alert originator.
| Province/Territory | Testing Date | Local Testing Time | Timezone | UTC Date | UTC Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alberta | Wednesday, March 1, 2023 | 1:55 PM | MST | Wednesday, March 1, 2023 | 8:55 PM |
| Alberta | No test in May 2023 | ||||
| British Columbia | Wednesday, May 10, 2023 | 1:55 PM | PDT | Wednesday, May 10, 2023 | 8:55 PM |
| Manitoba | Wednesday, May 10, 2023 | 1:55 PM | CDT | Wednesday, May 10, 2023 | 6:55 PM |
| New Brunswick | Wednesday, May 10, 2023 | 10:55 AM | ADT | Wednesday, May 10, 2023 | 1:55 PM |
| Newfoundland & Labrador | Wednesday, May 10, 2023 | 10:55 AM | NDT | Wednesday, May 10, 2023 | 1:25 PM |
| Northwest Territories | Wednesday, May 10, 2023 | 9:55 AM | MDT | Wednesday, May 10, 2023 | 3:55 PM |
| Nova Scotia | Wednesday, May 10, 2023 | 1:55 PM | ADT | Wednesday, May 10, 2023 | 4:55 PM |
| Nunavut | Wednesday, May 10, 2023 | 2:00 PM | EDT | Wednesday, May 10, 2023 | 6:00 PM |
| Ontario | Wednesday, May 10, 2023 | 12:55 PM | EDT | Wednesday, May 10, 2023 | 4:55 PM |
| Prince Edward Island | Wednesday, May 10, 2023 | 12:55 PM | ADT | Wednesday, May 10, 2023 | 3:55 PM |
| Quebec | No test in May 2023 | ||||
| Saskatchewan | Wednesday, May 10, 2023 | 1:55 PM | CST | Wednesday, May 10, 2023 | 7:55 PM |
| Yukon | Wednesday, May 10, 2023 | 1:55 PM | PDT | Wednesday, May 10, 2023 | 8:55 PM |
| Alberta | Wednesday, November 15, 2023 | 1:55 PM | MST | Wednesday, November 15, 2023 | 8:55 PM |
| British Columbia | November 2023 test to be confirmed | ||||
| Manitoba | Wednesday, November 15, 2023 | 1:55 PM | CST | Wednesday, November 15, 2023 | 7:55 PM |
| New Brunswick | Wednesday, November 15, 2023 | 10:55 AM | AST | Wednesday, November 15, 2023 | 2:55 PM |
| Newfoundland & Labrador | Wednesday, November 15, 2023 | 10:55 AM | NST | Wednesday, November 15, 2023 | 2:25 PM |
| Northwest Territories | Wednesday, November 15, 2023 | 1:55 PM | MST | Wednesday, November 15, 2023 | 8:55 PM |
| Nova Scotia | Wednesday, November 15, 2023 | 1:55 PM | AST | Wednesday, November 15, 2023 | 5:55 PM |
| Nunavut | Wednesday, November 15, 2023 | 2:00 PM | EST | Wednesday, November 15, 2023 | 7:00 PM |
| Ontario | Wednesday, November 15, 2023 | 12:55 PM | EST | Wednesday, November 15, 2023 | 5:55 PM |
| Prince Edward Island | Wednesday, November 15, 2023 | 12:55 PM | AST | Wednesday, November 15, 2023 | 4:55 PM |
| Quebec | Wednesday, November 15, 2023 | 1:55 PM | EST | Wednesday, November 15, 2023 | 6:55 PM |
| Saskatchewan | Wednesday, November 15, 2023 | 1:55 PM | CST | Wednesday, November 15, 2023 | 7:55 PM |
| Yukon | Wednesday, November 15, 2023 | 1:55 PM | PDT | Wednesday, November 15, 2023 | 8:55 PM |
Contact us
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If you have question or suggestions regarding this website or the NAAD System in general, please refer to the FAQ or contact us :