The hacker craze continues with the Government Accountability Office's recent discovery that cyber criminals are capable of bringing down airplanes using the Wi-Fi networks that grant passengers Internet access.
The new report, which the government watchdog released Tuesday, says that it is theoretically possible for someone with a laptop to take over an aircraft's warning systems and navigation systems, as well as infect flight control computers with a virus, according to CNN. These attacks would put the safety of the passengers in jeopardy and could also be done by someone on the ground, the report added.
Gerald Dillingham, one of the authors of the report, said the cockpits of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, the Airbus A350 and A380, and hundreds of other planes susceptible to hacking are wired into the same Wi-Fi system that passengers use.
"Modern communications technologies, including IP connectively, are increasingly used in aircraft systems, creating the possibility that unauthorized individuals might access and compromise aircraft avionics systems," the report said.
The report didn't say exactly how easy it would be for a hacker to take control of a plane, but it did say that the addition of Internet technology to planes for flight tracking is giving hackers a new vulnerability to take advantage of, Fox News reported.
The Federal Aviation Administration and cybersecurity experts that were interviewed in the report told investigators that airlines are able to create barriers with "firewalls," which can be hacked since they are software. They said "Internet connectivity in the cabin should be considered a direct link between the aircraft and the outside world, which includes potential malicious actors," the authors wrote.
Experts added that hackers could also take control of a plane with USB plugs and other physical connections, saying that wires linked to the plane's avionics in any way will make the aircraft vulnerable to a hack, CNN reported.
"If the cabin systems connect to the cockpit avionics systems and use the same networking platform, in this case IP, a user could subvert the firewall and access the cockpit avionics system from the cabin," experts said.
Peter DeFazio, D-Oregon, a member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, said the FAA must create new standards that keep terrorists on a plane or on the ground from commandeering airplanes with a laptop, which he referred to as "a serious vulnerability," CNN reported.
The report didn't mention how the GAO tested these situations, or if the information obtained is based on actual testing or just theories. However, the authors suggested that the FAA remove vulnerable avionics from aircrafts to reduce the risk of a hack.
Keith Washington, acting assistant secretary for administration with the FAA, told the GAO in a letter that the organization is starting to work more with cyber intelligence and security organizations from the federal government to improve security systems. Boeing and Airbus also said they are constantly making sure their planes are protected against hackers.
