IEEE Technology and Society Magazine - September 2015 - 18

blended threats, which may attack
various systems at once making the
defense of the aircraft both multifarious and technically dynamic as
threats continually evolve.
The threat of hostile takeover
is a multi-dimensional threat that
can emerge in many ways through
the unmanned aircraft system of
systems. A spectrum of attacks can
manifest through communicational and computational channels in
both the aircraft itself as well as
the ground control station through
software, hardware, embedded

tend to have generic hardware
and software which in many cases
come from foreign countries that
do not have mandatory development process security protocols.
This can result in built-in vulnerabilities and malicious logic errors
in the integrated circuits as well as
the software that drives the chips.
The interconnectivity of the various
embedded systems makes these
logic vulnerabilities per vasive
throughout the system.
Embedded components such as
integrated circuits, programmable
logic controllers, and industrial control-type mechanisms can inflict physical
as well as informational
damage in both the aircraft
Hostile takeover threats to
and the ground control staunmanned aerial systems are real
tion. Controllers that operate in real time have the
and imminent.
potential to manipulate
electrical outputs based on
the logic structures of the
systems, network components, and
circuit. If a malicious logic structure
other control structures. In many
manifests in real time, the devices
ways, an unmanned aircraft can be
connected to the controller such
considered as a wireless device/
as sensors, aerial control strucnode in the sky, open to the same
tures, motors, or other electromothreats as a wireless network. It is
tive devices can be malevolently
also open to attacks through commanipulated. Thus through adverse
munication and GPS signals. In a
computational logic, erroneous
broad sense, five distinct threat
electrical impulses in the hardware
domains can be discerned in a
can result in malicious control or a
hostile takeover threat spectrum:
catastrophic failure of the aircraft in
embedded system threats, malireal time.
cious software threats (malware),
Malicious Software Threats
wireless hack threats, GPS spoofMalicious software threats can
ing, and signal jamming. Each can
emerge in an unmanned aerial sysbe considered as a formidable mentem through any one of the comace to unmanned aircraft security,
putational systems in both the
with a blending of these threats
aircraft and the ground control
being a latent prospect as aerial
system. These threats are similar
operations become ubiquitous in
to most computational systems:
the national airspace.
viruses, worms, spyware, as well
Embedded Systems Threats
as innumerable forms of malware.
Embedded systems security is a
Malicious software can result in
major concern for the unmanned
hostile aircraft control through
aerial system. Embedded systems
many channels such as network

IEEE Technology and Society Magazine

based intrusion, software exploitation, communication signal manipulation, as well as flight control
hijacking. The possibilities of nefarious malware manipulation are
virtually endless. The plethora of
malware mechanisms make their
manipulation a formidable threat to
unmanned aircraft.

Wireless Hack Threats
Drones are unmanned aircraft
on a wireless tether when they
are not autonomously flown. This
means that they are open to traditional wireless network hacks and
exploits resulting in a hostile takeover of the aircraft. Threats include
packet injection, re-authentication,
and script code injection, as well
as other threats to the wireless network components within the system of systems. Wireless hacks
can be directed at the aircraft, the
ground station or both.

GPS Spoofing Threats
GPS civilian signals are founded
upon an open standard with free
accessibility signals, no form of
authentication, all on top of unencrypted signals. The transparency
and predictability of GPS signals
have created an inherent weakness
in the system: the ability for GPS
signals to be spoofed, which means
the signals can be maliciously replicated with ease. An unmanned
aircraft can be hijacked, controlled
and ultimately crashed by spoofing
its live, real-time GPS signals. GPS
spoofing can occur in many ways
such as through live satellite signal
spoofing, software code spoofing
as well as differential corrections
spoofing. Regardless of the mechanism, GPS spoofing poses a critical
danger to unmanned aircraft as the
open nature of civilian GPS creates
a wide range of technical spoofs
that are relatively easy to formulate
and implement.
∕

september 2015

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of IEEE Technology and Society Magazine - September 2015