Image: Shutterstock
What’s new: A spike in GPS spoofing, jamming, and concern about maritime operations in the Red Sea.
Why it’s important: Interference with GPS signals has resulted in ship groundings and collisions.
What else to know:
- The article got at least one thing wrong saying GPS satellites are geosynchronous. We are also unsure about what is meant by the geo-fencing comment.
- The article also mentions cross checking GPS with other GNSS. We wonder if most ships have multi-system receivers since only GPS is used by AIS. It would also be interesting to know if the Houthis are just spoofing GPS or are more sophisticated and are spoofing all GNSS at the same time (not that difficult).
- Saudi Arabia’s eLoran system provides resilient navigation signals to the Red Sea which are very difficult to disrupt. Yet maritime operations are often operating on a razor-thin profit margin and new equipment is not a priority.
Ship crews reach out for support as Red Sea GPS spoofing climbs to danger levels
The spike in physical attacks against shipping by Houthi rebels in the Red Sea has been mirrored by an increase in jamming and spoofing of GPS signals, effectively removing position, navigation and timing information from the control of the ship’s navigators.
Examples have included vessels travelling at supersonic speeds or positioned on land, sometimes in circles surrounding targets that bad actors are trying to protect.
As well as reducing the vessel’s ability to navigate, these RF-cyber attacks can impact mandatory GMDSS safety services, potentially removing the ability of ships to send a distress call.
