The Dangerous Rise of GPS Attacks

The disruption to GPS services started getting worse on Christmas Day. Since then, the region around the Baltic Sea—including neighboring Germany, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania—has faced persistent attacks against GPS systems. Tens of thousands of planes flying in the region have reported problems with their navigation systems in recent months amid widespread jamming attacks, which can make GPS inoperable. In recent years, there has been a rapid uptick in attacks against GPS signals and wider satellite navigation systems, known as GNSS, including those of Europe, China, and Russia. There is also a risk that ships and aircraft will stop traffic to this area and therefore global trade will be affected.” “A growing threat situation must be expected in connection with GPS jamming,” Joe Wagner, a spokesperson from Germany’s Federal Office for Information Security, tells WIRED, saying there are technical ways to reduce its impact.