And we hear that Iraqi militants are using SkyGrabber to intercept US drones!
You might want to call it one of the most bizarre news of the month! An infamous American newspaper claims that Iraqi militants are using cheap software like SkyGrabber to intercept the radio signals of US drones. The newspaper has cited quotes from senior defense officials and personnel from intelligence departments which states that Iranian-backed militants are using SkyGrabber and similar software to receive drone feeds. The software is easily available on the internet and can be bought for US$ 25.95 only.
How did the US intelligence learn about the on-going practice?
In July 2009, US army arrested an Iraqi militant and found a laptop among his other possessions. Upon investigation, the officers found a video of the drone feed which was captured using SkyGrabber. One official reports that the militants had kept details of hour by hour drone feeds.
Though the practice has been found among Iraqi militants only, the US officials believe that similar practice is employed in Afghanistan. The drone feed interception through SkyGrabber software can be used at any place where the drone are used.
How were the militants able to intercept the feed?
US drones have been using unencrypted uplink and downlink radio signals. Just for the record, encrypted radio signals cannot be intercepted unless one knows the secret password or security code. The same encryption technology is used in residential Wi-Fi connections. The particular customer is provided a secret password by the Internet Service Provider (ISP). Such a Wi-Fi connection can only be accessed if you know the password. Unencrypted radio signals can be accessed by anyone as they are transmitted without any security coding. Programs like SkyGrabber takes advantage of this unencrypted radio links between drones and the ground control office.
US officials say that they knew the flaw but assumed it would not cause any problem. They say efforts are being made to fix the problems.
Skygrabber
Comments