Attack on aviation: GPS spoofers ‘hack time’ on commercial airlines

A recent surge in GPS ‘spoofing’, a form of digital attack which can send commercial airliners off course, has entered an intriguing new dimension, according to cybersecurity researchers: The ability to hack time.

There has been a 400% surge in GPS spoofing incidents affecting commercial airliners in recent months, according to aviation advisory body OPSGROUP. Many of those incidents involve illicit ground-based GPS systems, particularly around conflict zones, that broadcast incorrect positions to the surrounding airspace in a bid to confuse incoming drones or missiles.