After welcoming hacking research, automobile technology started to get better at defending against hacks. So why has the airline industry not been as welcoming?
I’m building a homebuilt experimental airplane. Yes, I plan to fly in it. Don’t be afraid, lots of others are too, and this segment of inventors could easily prove a valuable anti-hacking component for big jets and small planes industries alike.
The airline industry is paralyzed with fear of bad press, especially of getting hacked. With more new planes getting wired (and wireless) systems, there will continue to be more networks flying around in the air by your seat in the cabin.
Not all networks control critical things; many are involved in doing quite simple things like changing the color of the lights in the cabin. So what’s the risk to flight control systems? That’s exactly what the automotive industry figured ten years ago: What could possibly go wrong with vehicle control if they got hacked?
Until it did. Here at BlackHat a while back we got to see videos of vehicles swerving out of control following a hack. Thankfully, the automotive industry came to terms with the hacking reality, and (some) even sponsored hacking opportunities like the automotive hacking village here at DefCon later in the week. It was a very positive turn of events. By engaging the hacker culture in a more open way, automobile technology started to get better at defending against hacks, which helps to keep us all safe.
The airline industry has not been as welcoming. While it’s not as plausible to park a jet in a suite at DefCon, seemingly few strides have been made to warmly welcome hacking research. It’s not implausible to make some ..
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