Warning For Pilots To Counter Airborne Hacking

As the military helicopter lifts off the ground and heads skyward, the numbers on the altimeter suddenly stop ticking upward. The rumble of the helicopter’s engines fades and the chopper starts losing altitude. A second later, a dire warning flashes in red on a cockpit screen: “Cyber Anomaly.”

The helicopter is under attack, but not from missiles or guns. Seconds later, it smashes into the ground. But this pilot is not in a real helicopter, just a small simulator set up in a conference room of a high-rise office building in Virginia.

The pilot is in fact part of a Raytheon team that is building a new warning system it calls CADS (Cyber Anomaly Detection System) that tells pilots when their planes are being hacked, something the US military expects to happen in the battles of the future.

Speaking to DefenseOne, a  Raytheon spokesman said,  “Basically, we’re trying to give the pilot the information about what’s happening internally on his aircraft in real time.... we’re telling him what’s going on and allowing him to make decisions about what he needs to do to correct the problems.”

Inside most aircraft, important electronics are plugged into a serial data bus. The bus used in many U.S. military planes was developed in the 1970s and “still have not been updated for security,” according to Raytheon.

“You GPS talks on it, your fuel valve switches are on it, your autopilot is on it and other avionics systems all communicate over this bus,” Fry said. “What we found is as technology has increased and more and more [commercial] products are put in aircraft, there’s more of an attack surface for cyber threats to go onto the platform.”

Raytheon began developing this Cyber Anomaly Detection System three years ago after receiving “customer feedback” about “vulnerabilities in aviation platforms,” Raytheon is funding the project itself won’t say if the systems is deployed on U.S. military aircraft.

Pentagon officials have increasingly been talking about weapon cyber vulnerabilities and the need for companies “harden” their products. Hackers can get into military and commercial aircraft, vehicles, and even missiles and bombs by infecting them with malware, by plugging an infected cell phone into one of the aircraft’s USB ports, or even wirelessly. 

In the simulation the the helicopterwas injected with malicious code wirelessly from a tablet. The code caused the helicopter’s engines to shut down. While the pilot was able to disable the helicopter’s wireless receiver before hitting the ground, he was not able to stop its fall.

Raytheon says the technology could be used to detect cyber intrusions on drones, vehicles or even missiles and although its product can currently only detect attacks, new versions may be able to fight them off and repair the damage.

“In the future we’re looking more in that direction, but right now we’re starting with a passive system, so we won’t interfere with the bus......We’re just going to leave the human in the loop and leave the pilot in control and make him aware of his surroundings so that he can take the actions.” Raytheon's spokesman said.

Raytheon:           DefenseOne:       

You Might Also Read:

Aircraft Can Be Successfully Hacked In-Flight:

 

« Using Blockchain Against Counterfeit & Forgery
Serious Cyber Attacks In Singapore Reflect Poor Cyber Security »

CyberSecurity Jobsite
Perimeter 81

Directory of Suppliers

North Infosec Testing (North IT)

North Infosec Testing (North IT)

North IT (North Infosec Testing) are an award-winning provider of web, software, and application penetration testing.

ZenGRC

ZenGRC

ZenGRC - the first, easy-to-use, enterprise-grade information security solution for compliance and risk management - offers businesses efficient control tracking, testing, and enforcement.

Alvacomm

Alvacomm

Alvacomm offers holistic VIP cybersecurity services, providing comprehensive protection against cyber threats. Our solutions include risk assessment, threat detection, incident response.

Syxsense

Syxsense

Syxsense brings together endpoint management and security for greater efficiency and collaboration between IT management and security teams.

ON-DEMAND WEBINAR: What Is A Next-Generation Firewall (and why does it matter)?

ON-DEMAND WEBINAR: What Is A Next-Generation Firewall (and why does it matter)?

Watch this webinar to hear security experts from Amazon Web Services (AWS) and SANS break down the myths and realities of what an NGFW is, how to use one, and what it can do for your security posture.

Italian Association of Critical Infrastructure Experts (AIIC)

Italian Association of Critical Infrastructure Experts (AIIC)

AIIC acts as a focal point in Italy for expertise on the protection of Critical Infrastructure including ICT networks and cybersecurity.

Securicon

Securicon

Securicon provides expert consulting for application, system and network security.

Meiya Pico Information Co

Meiya Pico Information Co

Meiya Pico is the leading digital forensics and information security products and service provider in China.

Zen360Consult

Zen360Consult

Zen360Consult provides Advisory and Training services in the field of Cyber Resilience, which includes Cyber Security /ISMS and Business Continuity.

DAkkS

DAkkS

DAkkS is the national accreditation body for Germany. The directory of members provides details of organisations offering certification services for ISO 27001.

Fischer Identity

Fischer Identity

Fischer Identity provide identity & access management and identity governance administration solutions.

Smart Contract Security Alliance

Smart Contract Security Alliance

The Smart Contract Security Alliance supports the blockchain ecosystem by building standards for smart contract security and smart contract audits.

Glocomms

Glocomms

Glocomms is a leading specialist recruitment agency for the tech sector, providing permanent, contract, and multi-hire recruitment from our global hubs in San Francisco, New York, London and Berlin.

Control System Cyber Security Association International (CS2AI)

Control System Cyber Security Association International (CS2AI)

CS2AI is the premier global not for profit workforce development organization supporting professionals of all levels charged with securing control systems.

SLVA Cybersecurity

SLVA Cybersecurity

SLVA Cybersecurity excel at delivering security-as-a-service, fit-for-purpose, within the constraints of realistic budgets and business expectations.

CFTS

CFTS

CFTS 'Computer Facilities Technical Services' is a Ugandan ICT Support Company that specialises in infrastructure and support services including network security.

Cranium

Cranium

Cranium are an international consultancy organisation specialised in privacy, security and data management.

Buguard

Buguard

Buguard is a multi-award-winning supplier of Application Security Assessments and GRC services.

Lakera

Lakera

Lakera empowers developers and organizations to build GenAI applications without worrying about AI security risks.

Amplifier Security

Amplifier Security

Amplifier Security are on a mission to empower security teams to modernize their practice by connecting the dots between their security stack and their people.

National Centre for Digital Security (CNSD) - Peru

National Centre for Digital Security (CNSD) - Peru

The National Center for Digital Security manages and supervises the operation of Digital Security in Peru in order to strengthen digital trust.