Abstract
 

Paper Title

The Threat is in the Air

Author(s)

Enrique Gonzalez (Ireland), Response Coordinator, Microsoft.

Time

11 December, Thursday, 10:15 - 10:55.

 

 
For over 15 years, transmitting information without the need of cables has represented a great advantage for mankind. The implementation of wireless networks has kept growing and growing ever since. In fact, it is about to come the time when bigger networks are to be deployed and that task is entrusted to HAPS (High Altitude Platform Station). The HAPS are devices that fly high enough to provide coverage to a big population (they can cover a territory up to 210 times de District of Delhi – not the city of Delhi-) but low enough to speed up the transmission of the information compared with a satellite (over 1500 times). Can they be the alternative and final solution to the connectivity problem on remote locations? Can they represent the connectivity solution for commercial flights? Or may be they can help to remove the antennas from the top of the buildings and skyscrapers...

Whatever they may represent, standard wireless networks have always been subject to attacks (in some cases quite successfully). What would happen if an unauthorised person managed to gain access to a network capable of providing connection to an area of up to 323.000 sq Km with a single access point? Even more, if we combine the big number of users every single HAPS can provide access for, with the wide variety of services it is capable to provide (data, voice, video, surveillance, etc...) it would result in one of the best platforms for launching a piece of malware or a DoS attack.

After more than 5 years of research and only just over a year ahead before the construction and production of commercial versions, we can be assisting to another point of inflection not only in the communications technology field but also on the security one. The aim of this paper is to provide a further insight about the connectivity services the HAPS can provide and, at the same time, to illustrate the security risks they can represent and how vulnerable or secure they can be.