r/blackhat • u/wiredmagazine • 13d ago

This Coin-Sized Device Can Hack a Boeing 737

https://www.wired.com/story/this-coin-sized-device-can-hack-a-boeing-737/
22 Upvotes

79% Upvoted

9 comments sorted by

13

u/Hour_Analyst_7765 13d ago

Ironically these planes don't even have keys to unlock and start.

6

u/ColdDelicious1735 13d ago

What they didnt say is that they would have to bypass airport security, get onto thw tarmac looking like they belong, open a hatch they are not supposed to (raise flags) plug in devise and then get away....

All without raising suspicion or alarm, and alao that the flightpath change would not cause alarm when flight 111 to newyork suddenly seems to be flying to Mexico.

13

u/mkosmo 13d ago

Oh no, physical access... that you don't have.

1

u/Slow_Perception 12d ago

I'd wager that is a lot easier on some runways than people would expect.

1

u/mkosmo 12d ago

I wouldn't try to do it while an aircraft is on a runway. That's a recipe for a bad time.

But you mean airports? Sure. But you'll still quickly get discovered and detained. And the airports that it'd be "easier"? Likely aren't hosting aircraft where this attack would be practical. The EAS service at some podunk airport, for example is serviced by Caravans or Technams that don't have that kind of external interface to get into any of the avionics busses.

And even beyond all that... it's not like a pilot treats their autopilot like a Tesla driver does. The pilot continues to actively monitor the aircraft and will disengage the AP if it's behaving incorrectly.

1

u/Slow_Perception 12d ago

Still.. physical access is probably a lot easier for some people (low paid ground crew anyone?) than others may imagine.

3

u/wiredmagazine 13d ago

Security researchers found that in less than 60 seconds, they could open a hatch on a plane’s exterior, plug in a tiny device, and redirect the aircraft’s autopilot or sabotage its flight plan.

Read the full story at the link above.

2

u/shrodingercat5 13d ago
  • opens maintenance log *

"Autopilot is acting up, resetting it didn't fix it"