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DATE | 2015-05-27 |
FROM | Ruben Safir
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SUBJECT | Subject: [NYLXS - HANGOUT] Plane Hacking
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http://www.theinquirer.net/inquirer/news/2408938/fbi-plane-hacker-claims-he-hacked-hard-and-often
FBI: Plane hacker claims he hacked hard and often
Admitted to making plane change course By Dave Neal
Mon May 18 2015, 11:43 The FBI says that a hacker really hacked a plane in flight
*DOCUMENTS PULLED* from the FBI reveal that Chris Roberts, the security researcher who was removed from a flight over security concerns, carried out a number of attacks and even managed to make a plane change course.
The FBI interviewed Roberts at the time, and got him to reveal exactly what sort of stuff he was getting up to. He admitted to as many as 20 attacks, including one that really concerned the intelligence agency.
FBI documents made their way to Canadian news organisation APTN, which reports on the affidavit and other information.
"[Roberts] stated that he successfully commanded the system he had accessed to issue the ‘CLB' or climb command . He stated that he thereby caused one of the airplane engines to climb resulting in a lateral or sideways movement of the plane during one of these flights," said the affidavit signed by FBI agent Mike Hurley.
Find myself on a 737/800, lets see Box-IFE-ICE-SATCOM, ? Shall we start playing with EICAS messages? "PASS OXYGEN ON" Anyone ? :)
— Chris Roberts (-at-Sidragon1) April 15, 2015
"We believe Roberts had the ability and the willingness to use the equipment then with him to access or attempt to access the [inflight entertainment system] and possibly the flight control systems on any aircraft equipped with an [inflight entertainment system] and it would endanger the public safety to allow him to leave the Syracuse airport that evening with that equipment."
Research is one thing, endangering life is another, and the security industry has not exactly embraced the ad hoc research by Roberts.
Alex Stamos, CISO at Yahoo, was critical . "You cannot promote the idea that security research benefits humanity while defending research that endangered hundreds of innocents," he said.
United Airlines, which was the airline from which Roberts was removed, said at the time that it would prefer not to offer him carriage.
However, it did say that the methods and means reported at the time of the earlier reports would not have affected transportation, which is something that the FBI information would seem to dispute.
"Given Mr Roberts's claims regarding manipulating aircraft systems, we've decided it's in the best interest of our customers and crew members that he not be allowed to fly United," the airline said in April.
"However, we are confident that our flight control systems could not be accessed through the techniques he describes." µ
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