GPS Vulnerability...

[Pintail]

To those of you who <rely> on their GPS devices, there is a most interesting article in last Sunday's NYT (page 4, Review section) concerning the vulnerability and susceptibility of the system to outside forces (ie, tampering).  This will be of no surprise or concern, even, to Professor Huth, I think (right, John?); but the entire system is quite open to sabotage by foreign interference, if you care...

The article is a call for a back-up system and it appears to be very necessary!

Edited January 29, 2021 by Pintail

[josko]

When that happens, finding our way back to the put-in will be the least of our problems.

[JohnHuth]

Thanks for alerting me to the link.   That article is pretty spot on.   

 

In my navigation class, I devote a lecture to radio triangulation and GPS, and ultimately the GPS interdependencies and vulnerabilities.   It's pretty sobering to realize how much we rely on GPS: power grids, bank transactions, shipping, and the like.  

One amusing item I came upon was a GPS jamming device that can fit into your car cigarette lighter/power source.   Now, it's illegal to jam GPS, but it's legal to buy these items (unless that's changed since I last checked).   You can also build your own GPS jamming device, if you're so inclined.   

 

 

Edited February 24, 2021 by JohnHuth

[Ken]

On 2/24/2021 at 3:00 PM, JohnHuth said:

 Now, it's illegal to jam GPS, but it's legal to buy these items (unless that's changed since I last checked).   You can also build your own GPS jamming device, if you're so inclined.   

 

 

It's definitely illegal to sell jammers in the USA.  It's pretty much illegal sell or operate a device to transmit any radio signal except from an FFC approved (Part-15) device or unless you have an appropriate license for the class of transmitter such as an amateur (ham) radio license.   For some devices, it's even more the manufacturer than the operator that the FCC will come after if the device appears legal but can transmit a signal that's not permitted.  I do some radio control hobby stuff with FPV video gear and have read reports of some manufacturers getting fined by the FCC because their transmitters haven't properly disabled some channels that aren't available for us in the USA. There are about 40 channels but not all of them are legal for use and some require a ham license.  The more legit manufacturers disable those channels and have some sort of setup you  have to go through to turn them back on and the instructions say not to turn them on without a ham license.

I do kinda laugh when I see ads for jammers.  I get email flyers from Banggood (like a cheap Chinese amazon.com) every week as I've purchased electronic hobbyist stuff from them a bunch.  The have this thing for $9.99 that's called a "cigarette lighter power supply" but has a GPS signal jammer attached and the is described in the fine print.  You could order it from China.  It would be illegal to sell in the USA and of course wicked illegal to operate in the USA.

-Ken (KB1YMZ)

[JohnHuth]

Thanks, Ken.   That makes more sense.   I definitely saw ads for the cigarette lighter jammer, too.   

[EEL]

I hope this is not a thread hijack, but those who expect to rely upon GPS enabled devices for safety in "consequential" settings should look carefully at the specs and review literature on the effectiveness of various services and devices.  In 2015, there was an unfortunate death in the Presidential Range where a winter hiker activated a device to indicate they were in trouble.  Critically,  a the second activation resulted in an inaccurate set of coordinates.  Unfortunately,  SAR used the inaccurate info, it was logical to do so, and the person died before they were found by using the the original set of coordinates.  Absent the inaccurate coordinates, the person may well have be saved.

Suffice it to say there are many ways for GPS systems to provide inaccurate info and for related systems to not perform well when it is critical that they do.

Ed Lawson