Cybersecurity audit specialists from multiple firms say Russia is altering GPS signals to work to spy on government agencies in strategic areas, such as Israel’s Ben Gurion Airport. The Kremlin has denied such claims.
According to Israeli intelligence reports, the
signal from GPS systems at that airport has shown failures resulting in
affectations for pilots and aircraft using this location system. “Data
alterations significantly impact operations at the airport,” the Israeli
authorities say.
On the other hand, Russia’s ambassador in
Israel claims that these allegations are the product of fake news and there is
no way they will be taken seriously.
So far the interruption in GPS signals has not
caused any accidents, Israel’s airport reports. Cybersecurity audit experts add
that by failing the GPS signal, pilots can resort to the use of the instrument
landing system for take-off and landing. “These faults only affect
aircraft in the sky, not ground sensors,” the experts said
Flaws in this system have been linked to cyber warfare
systems used by the Russian
government to protect their aircraft at Hmeimim airbase in Syria. These
facilities are located more than 300km away from Ben Gurion Airport. Syria is
the Russian government’s main ally in that part of the world, which explains
the presence of Soviet aircraft relatively close to Israel, one of the most
prominent United States allies.
Cybersecurity audit specialists from the International
Institute of Cyber Security (IICS) believe that the Russian intervention
hypothesis should not be ruled out. On previous occasions, Russia has
demonstrated the ability to block, modify and falsify GPS signals for various purposes,
mainly defense tactics.
U.S. intelligence agencies have documented at
least 10,000 incidents of GPS signal jamming, claiming that the Russian militia
is a pioneer in this field. The main purpose of these operations is to keep
potential intruders away from Russian military bases.
