Towards a more secure ATC voice communications system

Stelkens-Kobsch, Tim H.; Hasselberg, Andreas; Mühlhausen, Thorsten; Carstengerdes, Nils; Finke, Michael; Neeteson, Constantijn

doi:10.1109/dasc.2015.7311419

Cited by 11 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 3 publications

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“…while others mention problems with pirate radio stations. There are some related incidents with spoofed voice communication reported in the aviation literature and on the Internet [36], and recent works also discuss the urgent need to improve the security of VHF [36], [37]. While intruders are quickly detected through changes in signal or voice levels, between 30% and 40% of VHF users believe it offers technical integrity and authenticity checks.…”

Section: Voice (Vhf)mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Typical representatives of this type of research are separate intrusion detection mechanisms based on cyber-physical defenses such as improved localization protocols (e.g., [57]). Also in this category, we can find works on statistical analysis [58], machine learning [36], physical-layer security [102]- [104], or data fusion with backup technologies [100]. The characteristic shared by these approaches is the fact that they can be deployed within a small time window.…”

Section: Directions In Aviation Security Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

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On Perception and Reality in Wireless Air Traffic Communication Security

Strohmeier

Schäfer

Pinheiro

et al. 2016

IEEE Trans. Intell. Transport. Syst.

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More than a dozen wireless technologies are used by air traffic communication systems during different flight phases. From a conceptual perspective, all of them are insecure as security was never part of their design. Recent contributions from academic and hacking communities have exploited this inherent vulnerability to demonstrate attacks on some of these technologies. However, not all of these contributions have resonated widely within aviation circles. At the same time, the security community lacks certain aviation domain knowledge, preventing aviation authorities from giving credence to their findings.In this survey, we aim to reconcile the view of the security community and the perspective of aviation professionals concerning the safety of air traffic communication technologies. To achieve this, we first provide a systematization of the applications of wireless technologies upon which civil aviation relies. Based on these applications, we comprehensively analyze vulnerabilities and existing attacks. We further survey the existing research on countermeasures and categorize it into approaches that are applicable in the short term and research of secure new technologies deployable in the long term.Since not all of the required aviation knowledge is codified in academic publications, we additionally examine existing aviation standards and survey 242 international aviation experts. Besides their domain knowledge, we also analyze the awareness of members of the aviation community concerning the security of wireless systems and collect their expert opinions on the potential impact of concrete attack scenarios using these technologies.

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Section: Voice (Vhf)mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Directions In Aviation Security Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

On Perception and Reality in Wireless Air Traffic Communication Security

Strohmeier

Schäfer

Pinheiro

et al. 2016

IEEE Trans. Intell. Transport. Syst.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…An investigation showed that speech recognition algorithms could be used to automate and scale a tracking strategy, even if blocking measures were utilized to prevent public websites from obtaining the data [38] . Real-world instances of air traffic controller impersonation in Turkish airspace [25] and at Melbourne airport created concern for controllers.…”

Section: Very High Frequency (Vhf)mentioning

confidence: 99%

Aviation attacks based on ILS and VOR vulnerabilities

Choudhary¹,

Sihag²,

Gupta³

et al. 2022

J Surveill Secur Saf

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Aim: As the aviation industry grows more digital and reliant on wireless technology, it has grown more appealing to cyber criminals, including nation-state actors and terrorists. Vulnerabilities in a wide range of networked devices and (sub)systems, as well as their implementations and design defects, can be used to carry out malicious operations. The purpose of this study is to provide a comprehensive survey threats on aviation communication models. Methods: We describe an overview of aviation threat model and attacks. A detailed taxonomy predicated on security vulnerability is presented. Further, this paper discusses the research aspects and challenges to be taken care of in aviation security and communication Finally, we conclude with a summary of the current state of threats and their consequences for widely-used aviation models. Results: The main findings of this study is to introduce fundamental security vulnerabilities of aviation model and classify into categories to efficiently analyze them. Vulnerabilities of VOR, ILS systems and their impact are also discussed. Moreover, we describe and assess mitigation systems to defense these attacks. Conclusion: We conclude that the aviation system is still exposed to various attacks. We examine key technological challenges that have been serving as a deterrent to adopting more secure alternative approaches, as well as research avenues where further progress is needed.

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“…The secure ATC communications (SACom) prototype is a modular system which was developed as one of seven prototypes within the project, which were designed to close known security gaps in present or near future ATM systems [10]. Air-ground voice communication was recently described again to be one of the most endangered communication means for spoofing and/or spamming [11].…”

Section: An Example: the Sacom Prototypementioning

confidence: 99%

A practical example for validation of ATM security prototypes

Finke

Stelkens-Kobsch

2018

CEAS Aeronaut J

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The insights presented in this article are outcomes of a security research project that was initiated to collate and interpret the latest findings gathered in the domain of air traffic management security. The concept of a holistic approach to security management has been evaluated. Due to the large scope of the project, only an excerpt of the findings is provided in this article. This article focuses on a brief description of a security prototype validation methodology, developed within the project. To provide tangible application of the methodology, the adoption to a security prototype is developed, which is intended to enhance security of the air traffic control voice communication system.

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Towards a more secure ATC voice communications system

Cited by 11 publications

References 3 publications

On Perception and Reality in Wireless Air Traffic Communication Security

On Perception and Reality in Wireless Air Traffic Communication Security

Aviation attacks based on ILS and VOR vulnerabilities

A practical example for validation of ATM security prototypes

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