The deployment of controller-pilot data link communications (CPDLC) in the United States faces several potential risks

The deployment of controller-pilot data link communications (CPDLC) in the United States faces several potential risks

1. The technology employed for the communication between the pilot and Air Traffic Services Unit is accessible to hackers. This vulnerability exposes the system to a risk of manipulation and interference than before. The availability of affordable tools such as the software-defined radios has posed a severe threat of system access by unauthorized people. This equipment can monitor and decode messages. This information can be shared on various platforms revealing the aircraft ownership, flight plan and destination. Private and confidential data can easily leak by tapping communication using these gadgets (Di Marco et al., 2016). Below are some of the cyber-attacks against this technology.
2. Eavesdropping: It involves listening to data traffic without permission. It’s the easiest method of attack and poses very minimal risk.

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3. Jamming: It involves blocking communication between the communicating parties (Di Marco et al., 2016). A jamming attack affects all the users communicating through the same network.
4. Alteration: It involves modification of information on transit. Modified data is challenging to identify, meaning the receiver consumes it as it has come from a valid source.
5. Masquerading: The attacker impersonates as one of the authorized users (Sestorp & Lehto, 2019). If the attack is not detected, an outsider may give misleading information which compromises the safety of the aircraft.
6. Another issue surrounding the CPDLC technology is the exchange of long and complicated messages between the two parties. Generally, complex statements are likely to be ambiguous. Without clarification, either the ATC or the pilot may end up making inappropriate decisions that may compromise the safety of the aircraft (Srinivasan et al., 2019). Although the system provides an opportunity to share long and complicated messages, the users should be brief and precise.
7. In conclusion, the CPDL technology faces the risk of cyber-attacks and misinterpretation of information shared due to ambiguity of complex statements. The airline industry needs to come up with strategies to protect its communication system from external access. In addition to this, the communicating parties should use short and precise statements when sharing crucial information through the system.

References

Di Marco, D., Manzo, A., Ivaldi, M., & Hird, J. (2016). Security Testing with Controller- Pilot Data Link Communications. In 2016 11th International Conference on Availability, Reliability and Security (ARES) (pp. 526-531). IEEE.

Sestorp, I., & Lehto, A. (2019). CPDLC in Practice: A Dissection of the Controller Pilot Data Link Communication Security.

Srinivasan, N., Baladhandapani, G., & Saptharishi, H. (2019). U.S. Patent Application No. 15/891,884.