Tag Archives: Richard Cuff

New Farsi Numbers Station Reported on 7910 kHz

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor Richard Cuff, who shares an article from Seth Hettena’s Substack about the appearance of a new shortwave numbers station believed to be broadcasting in Farsi. Numbers stations–mysterious broadcasts that read sequences of numbers–have long been associated with intelligence agencies communicating with field operatives using unbreakable one-time pad encryption. According to the report, this new signal first appeared around the time of recent military strikes involving Iran and has been heard on 7910 kHz. One of our readers reported hearing it around 2:15 UTC recently.

If you capture a recording of this numbers station, please reach out as I would like to add it to the Shortwave Radio Audio Archive. Thank you!

BBC World Service’s Emergency Radio Programme for Iran

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Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor Richard Cuff, who writes:

Also spotted this at the BBC Press information website — it’s been in
effect, apparently, since early in February:

BBC launches emergency lifeline radio programme for Iran (BBC Media Centre)

4 February 2026

The programme will air daily for 30 minutes across medium and shortwave frequencies

The BBC World Service has launched a temporary emergency lifeline radio programme for Iran in response to the ongoing turmoil in the country, and the unprecedented crackdown on protests.

To complement the existing BBC News Persian video and digital services, the radio programme will be available on mediumwave and shortwave across Iran to increase the population’s access to news and information. To broaden its offer and availability of programming, the BBC World Service has also made some of its TV content available on mediumwave radio.

Since 8 January, the Iranian people have been subject to an internet blackout. Prior to this, BBC News Persian’s digital services saw their biggest reach in a year with their platforms reaching more than 33 million people.

The short-term programme will cover the latest news and developments in Iran and will place events inside the country within their wider regional and international context. It will feature voices from inside Iran alongside clear, informed analysis of the most recent political, social, and economic developments shaping the situation in the country.

The programme will air daily for 30 minutes across medium and shortwave frequencies from 4.30pm GMT / 8pm Iran Standard Time. The temporary programme has been granted resource from existing funds until the end of March 2026.

Fiona Crack, Interim Global Director, BBC News, says: “A key role of the BBC World Service is to step up in times of crisis to provide news and information for our audiences in greatest need. BBC News Persian reaches one in four adults in Iran, which is an astonishing feat considering their reporting is banned in the country.

“The team have been essential in telling the urgent story of the Iranian people to audiences around the world, and our new radio programme will give the Iranian people more ways to access independent and impartial news.”

Tarik Kafala, Interim Regional Director, Middle East and North Africa, says: “BBC News Persian have worked tirelessly to deliver journalism throughout this period of unrest as the demand for trusted news has soared in Iran. The teams have supplied extended TV hours in Iran and an increased offer on digital platforms for the Iranian people. They have reported for UK audiences across bulletins, live pages and on forensic journalism with BBC Verify.”

The BBC World Service has a history of launching emergency services in times of crisis. In April 2025, BBC News Burmese started providing audio and video content on a satellite channel in the aftermath of Myanmar earthquake.

In December 2024, following the fall of the Assad regime, the BBC World Service set up an enhanced audio channel on FM and mediumwave for the people of Syria. This follows the emergency radio service for Gaza in November 2023 and for Sudan in May 2023 amid conflict.

In February 2022, the BBC News Ukraine service extended TV bulletins following the invasion of the country.

Where to find the programme:

The live programme will be available at 4.30pm GMT (8pm Iran Time) on 702kHz medium wave and 9465kHz short wave
The programme will be repeated at 6pm GMT (9.30pm Iran time) on 702kHz mediumwave and 5935kHz shortwave
A visualised version of the programme will be broadcast on BBC Persian TV at 6pm GMT (9.30pm Iran time)

RFA to resume broadcasts to North Korea

“Old-school static wins the spy wars”

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Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor Richard Cuff, who shares this Komando.com piece on how old-school shortwave number stations remain active in espionage. Intelligence services — notably Russia — still send coded beeps and voice-read numbers using one-time pads because radio is simple, anonymous, and hard to trace.

Sure, we’re all shortwave enthusiasts and many of us grew up with number stations abound, but it’s always great to see popular websites pick up on this. Read the full article on Komando.com.

Radio: Your Lifeline When the Grid Goes Down

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Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor Richard Cuff, for sharing this article from Metro.co.uk: “Radio is still the ultimate survival tool during blackouts and emergencies.” The piece underscores radio’s enduring role as a reliable source of information when modern digital networks fail. In an age of increasing reliance on internet and mobile phone services, it’s a timely reminder of why radio is so valuable in crisis situations.

BBC Audio Access Abroad: Major Changes Coming Spring 2025

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Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Richard Cuff, who shares the following news via the BBC:

Upcoming changes for listening to BBC audio outside the UK

If you live outside the UK, how you listen to BBC radio will change, starting from spring 2025.

Instead of using BBC Sounds, you’ll be able to use a new service at BBC.com and on the BBC app. BBC Studios has launched these all-new audio environments, tailored to outside UK audiences. The BBC’s content will remain available on other international podcast platforms.

International listeners will no longer be able to use the BBC Sounds app and website from spring 2025.

You can find out more about these changes on the bbc.com website.

Advice for UK Listeners travelling abroad

For listeners who reside in the UK, you will still be able to use the BBC Sounds mobile app when you are abroad. Check our FAQ for further info: Can I use BBC Sounds when I travel outside the UK?

Why are we making these changes?

BBC Sounds is a UK licence fee funded service. To offer better value for our UK listeners, BBC Sounds will be repositioned and made available exclusively to UK audiences.

BBC Studios is a commercial subsidiary of the BBC and is focused on bringing our trusted, world class journalism and storytelling to international audiences. This includes BBC audio content on bbc.com and the BBC app, which will be focused to international listeners.

Support for listeners Outside the UK

If you live outside of the UK and have a query regarding listening to BBC radio and audio content, please visit the support page at bbc.com where you can find help and contact their support team.

Registration for the 2024 “Winter SWL Fest” is now available!

The Fest will be May 10th & 11th, 2024.

The Fest will be a combination in-person and Zoom event, and will be held at the Holiday Inn Express & Suites in Fort Washington, Pennsylvania – just north of Philadelphia. We have a block of rooms set aside for the Fest at a special rate; this block will only be available until April 18th, 2024. After that date our special rate may no longer be available, and the hotel itself may sell out.

In-person registration is limited to 65 participants, so register early if you don’t want to get shut out; there is no limit to the number of Zoom participants.

Start your process at the Winter SWL Fest website: http://www.swlfest.com

You can find out more information there, and access the group reservation link for the hotel and also register for either the in-person or the Zoom event.

We apologize if you’re seeing this announcement in multiple places; we wanted to get the news out there as quickly as possible since we have tight deadlines this year.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Richard Cuff and John Figliozzi, co-Festmeisters