Scott Manley Explains GPS Jamming

[Scott Manley] Explains GPS Jamming | Hackaday

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GPS Jamming: A Growing Concern

• GPS jamming is a growing threat to global navigation, with countries like Russia and China engaging in intentional interference with GPS signals to disrupt navigation systems. This phenomenon is not only limited to military applications, as it has significant implications for commercial aviation, navigation, and even everyday activities like using our smartphones. Despite the ease of jamming GPS signals, the consequences can be severe, causing navigation systems to malfunction or fail entirely. Moreover, GPS spoofing, a more sophisticated attack, can generate false GPS signals to deceive GPS receivers, further compromising navigation systems. 

Defending Against GPS Spoofing Attacks  

• GPS spoofing attacks, in which a fake satellite signal is sent to a GPS receiver, can have devastating consequences. To combat these attacks, it is essential to employ defense mechanisms. One effective method is the use of directional antennas, which can attenuate signals from below satellites and prevent jamming. Additionally, building smarter antennas that combine signals with different phases can provide directionality and allow for the recovery of accurate GPS signals. Another approach is to detect and flag suspicious signals, rejecting those that are too powerful to be from a satellite at a specific distance. Furthermore, employing multiple GPS systems, such as L1, L2, and L5, can provide an additional layer of security. Implementing measures such as directional antennas and complex cross-validation can harden GPS systems against spoofing.

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We always think of [Scott Manley] as someone who knows a lot about rockets. So, if you think about it, it isn’t surprising he’s talking about GPS — after all, the system uses satellites. GPS is used in everything these days, and other forms of navigation are starting to fall by the wayside. However, the problem is that the system is vulnerable to jamming and spoofing. This is especially important if you fear GPS allowing missiles or drones to strike precise targets. But there are also plenty of opportunities for malicious acts. For example, drone light shows may be subject to GPS attacks from rival companies, and you can easily imagine worse. [Scott] talks about the issues around GPS spoofing in the video, which you can see below.

Since GPS satellites are distant, blocking the signal is almost too easy, sometimes happening inadvertently. GPS has technology to operate in the face of noise and interference, but there’s no way to prevent it entirely. Spoofing — where you produce false GPS coordinates — is much more difficult.

Of course, jamming or spoofing GPS is highly illegal, and it is easy to locate jammers, so most people doing this will be state actors and military units. Don’t try this at home. But it does happen, and [Scott] mentions how warnings appear to alert pilots of areas where GPS may be unreliable due to jamming and spoofing.

There are anti-jamming countermeasures you can employ. But things like this tend to be leapfrog situations, where jammers will overcome the countermeasures only to face better countermeasures they’ll have to overcome again later.

As you might expect, this isn’t a how-to video, but just talks about the ideas behind jamming and spoofing along with the potential countermeasures. While you usually buy a module to do GPS, you can roll your own. If you want a detailed explainer, we got you.