Flight disruptions can cost billions of dollars, but most modern commercial flights rely on air traffic control systems that harbor serious vulnerabilities. The Federal Aviation Administration uses an infrastructure called NextGen, which relies on Automatic Dependent Surveillance – Broadcast, or ADS-B for short.
Since the beginning of 2020, all aircraft that fly within the U.S. must be equipped with ADS-B Out. This aspect of ADS-B broadcasts an airplane's vital information, in plain text, for everyone in broadcast range to receive. Below, we'll learn more about ADS-B and how it allows anyone to track flights from airlines to Air Force One on a smartphone, as well as how hackers can hijack it.
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How Important Is ADS-B?
Imagine you're a pilot just finishing up a long transatlantic flight. It's night, and you're relying primarily on your instruments, when out of the blue, your traffic collision avoidance system (TCAS) yells at you "Traffic one mile ahead. Descend. Descend!" After thousands of hours of training, you instinctually comply, when suddenly 99 more planes appear in your display. If you are flying an Airbus in autopilot, then there isn't even a choice — it reacts automatically.
Consider the mayhem that could be caused using this kind of attack on air traffic control at a major airport during the busy holiday season. Mother Nature has already provided a multitude of examples of the chaos that ensu ..
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