Your light aircraft avionics are HACKABLE! (Panic, now!)

denverpilot

denverpilot

Tied Down
Joined
Nov 8, 2009
Messages
55,469
Location
Denver, CO
Display Name
Display name:
DenverPilot
LOL... just "security" industry fodder, but it's fun to read it and say "Duh..."

CAN Bus, eh? Yawn...

https://www.kob.com/news/apnewsbreak-us-issues-hacking-alert-for-small-planes/5440742/

Rapid7 for those unaware actually is a decently respected company in the "let's exploit insecurable crap code for money"... er, I mean, "security" biz. But this one's a crack-up.

Definitely don't need a lockpick set for most Cessnas, just a keyring full of the few keys out there or a bump key, and that's only if rocking the wingtip doesn't pop the door open for you. Hahaha...

But hey. The yokels at KOB in ABQ are ON this important cybersecurity threat story and keeping you all safe from avionics HACKERS! Hackers, I say!

Be afraid. Everyone in ABQ needed this important news, too... hahaha... must have been a really slow news day...
 
Is a CANbus vulnerability more likely to make me crash than a 600 hour Slick mag?
 
Oh, it’s bad alright. I have taken to wearing a black balaclava when dispersing chemtrails because the Anti-Govnmnt Mind Control groups are trying to capture pilot faces with the secret cameras built into the new radios.
 
It has also been recently discovered that its possible for someone to completely disable the mechanical brake system, contaminate the fuel systems and/or compromise the flight control systems of most small aircraft if they have physical access to the aircraft. I recommend you write your local congress representatives and senators and encourage them to pass laws that will prevent criminals and those with criminal intent from having physical access to small aircraft.
 
I wonder what sort of "small planes" they hacked which had fly-by-wire systems that used canbus.

Great clickbait for Joe Sixpack on the evening news, though. :D
 
If they find a way to hack the ADS-B system and force that to be retired, some of the posters here might secretly dance a jig...
 
I've always wondered about the security of CPDLC or ACARS - I'm sure they're both encoded before being sent over VHF, but that seems to be a potential threat.
 
The older planes are at risk too. With physical access to the engine compartment I can hack a lot of wires and hoses that will result in incorrect instrument readings. I could mis rig your ailerons and control your steering. We’re all gonna die!

But the best part is thinking that the reason we should restrict access to an airplane is because the CAN bus is vulnerable.
 
kayoh190 said:
I've always wondered about the security of CPDLC or ACARS - I'm sure they're both encoded before being sent over VHF, but that seems to be a potential threat.
Click to expand...
Well, I just spent 5 minutes adding an ACARS receiver to my receiver collection, they may be encoded and they may be in greek, but they're not encrypted.
 
Last edited:
wanttaja said:
Or hold it, all the way from Yemen to Van Nuys.....
Click to expand...

Is that where the bad guys are from and where they’re going these days? I didn’t get the memo.

A few tried to kill my nephew a couple days ago in a completely different ****-hole. Got two other kids instead. :(
 
kayoh190 said:
It's all about getting a nice powerful stream, which I'm finding to be harder to do as I get older!
Click to expand...
there was scene from the BritCom show, Benny Hill, where a nurse asked Benny to fill a urine specimen collector sitting on the other side of the office.

His response was, "What?!? from here?"
 
giphy.gif
 
cgrab said:
The salesman was sure to point this out to me when I bought my Cardinal.
Click to expand...
Which begs the question.. does pee weigh more than fuel?

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk
 
mwagg737 said:
Which begs the question.. does pee weigh more than fuel?

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

Probably. It's mostly water at about 8 lbs/gallon. 100LL is 6.8 lbs/gallon. So now you have bad fuel and you're over gross! (And gross in general.)
 
mwagg737 said:
Which begs the question.. does pee weigh more than fuel?

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

Brian is going to show a fuel tester with mixed pee and 100 LL in his next video and then drink it. LOL.
 
In order to create a response from the CAN bus, these guys had to record bus traffic and then play it back into the aircraft while it was flying. The result was a few erroneous instrument indications. If your auto pilot was active when the NAV guidance directed an immediate turn, that would be bad ( for a second or so).

The unlikely part of this scenario is having someone attach a device directly to the wiring in your airplane and having it make inputs into the CAN bus. Just finding the wires in a cramped GA airplane installation would be a chore!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top