Is an airplane "hackable?"
 

If I was an evil-doer, say someone like a North-Korean hacker or ISIL/AQ terror guy bent on destruction of the West, I might want to gain control over an aircraft's control system. Is this something that can be done through hacking? Are such systems at all connected to the internet?

Definitely.

(OP reported to appropriate authorities because of what he's planning)

LOL. When you say "Definitely," is this based upon knowledge of the systems, a guess, or are you just jesting? More information would make your comment more appreciable.

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Obscure2k
TravelBuzz Moderator

Any computer system is hackable.

To this day, I think the Malaysian Airlines flight, that went missing, was stolen. Hacked? Perhaps not, but I think stolen is possible. Now feel free to tell me to stick my tinfoil hat where the sun don't shine :D.

If you can get to it. Aircraft are not "online".

Indeed, basic security. I would also expect to find the IFE system is totally divorced from the avionics package, or the interface is so basic that it's not hackable, so no, you can't plug your iPad into the IFE system and upload a virus. Real life is not a Roland Emmerich movie :)

Correct. The most basic (and perhaps most effective) security there is.

Also correct. IFE isn't a part of, say, the FMS or EICAS. The closest they get is that they (occasionally) share a power supply (GenX, APU, GPU, etc). However I be willing to bet the IFE does NOT work on battery or ADG power (i.e. emergency sources).

True, but it doesn't have to be online for it to happen. Someone (like maintenance) could plug in a rogue USB thumb drive or something that is otherwise infected - see the famous Stuxnet virus, which infiltrated an airgapped (not network connected) Iranian nuclear facility.

Most of the avionics packages in those airplanes are somewhat old and cannot be directly attached to a thumb drive. Even in the newer glass-panel aircraft, the entire system has to be physically removed. The primary driver for this is security and stability - you really don't want to have something that hasn't been tested and re-tested guiding an airplane on a long (or even short) flight in questionable weather.

Experience: Software Engineer, LSRM, Experimental Aircraft Builder (helped with my own avionics packages)

Allow me to play devil's advocate. :) Aircraft are in communication with the airlines' maintenance facilities, right? Is it two way communication or is the aircraft only capable of sending information, not receiving it?

I too thought aircraft weren't online in the usual sense, but then thought of this...

is youR "theskunk" moniker related to Skunk Works? ^

It's next to impossible, arguably impossible (but I guess nothing really is). There's someone on the AC FT board who works directly in this line of work. PM Jaysona if you have questions, he might answer as long as you guys don't pile all your questions on him!