WiFi Security Flaw Lets Drone Track Devices

WiFi's friendliness to other devices might pose a significant threat in the wrong circumstances. University of Waterloo researchers have discovered a security flaw in the networking standard that lets attackers track devices through walls.

The technique identifies the location of a device within 3.3ft just by exploiting WiFi devices' automatic contact responses (even on password-protected networks) and measuring the response times. You can identify all the connected hardware in a room, and even track people's movements if they have a phone or smartwatch.

The scientists tested the exploit by modifying an off-the-shelf drone to create a flying scanning device, the Wi-Peep. The robotic aircraft sends several messages to each device as it flies around, establishing the positions of devices in each room.

A thief using the drone could find vulnerable areas in a home or office by checking for the absence of security cameras and other signs that a room is monitored or occupied. It could also be used to follow a security guard, or even to help rival hotels spy on each other by gauging the number of rooms in use.

There have been attempts to exploit similar WiFi problems before, but the team says these typically require bulky and costly devices that would give away attempts. Wi-Peep only requires a small drone and about $15 in equipment that includes two WiFi modules and a voltage regulator.

An intruder could quickly scan a building without revealing their presence.

Research lead Dr. Ali Abedi is calling for changes to the WiFi standard to prevent devices from responding to "strangers." That may take years, however, and Abedi suggests that hardware makers address the issue in the meantime by introducing randomized response times.

The chances of burglars using drones to map your home devices aren't high at this stage (they'd still need the know-how), but there are things developers can do to thwart these aerial spying efforts.

Credit: engadget.com

SkyDrive Built And Flew A Drone That Carries A Person

Japanese eVTOL startup SkyDrive says it completed the first public test flight of its SD-03 on August 25. eVTOLs, or "electric vertical take-off and landing" vehicles, have received a lot of investment as companies hope to revolutionize transport by making it possible for people to take their commutes to the skies and fly over congested urban areas. As the name suggests, they take off straight into the air, meaning a long runway isn't needed. That's perfect for using them to take off from city rooftops, or other high-congestion areas, which is why companies like Uber are especially excited about them.

SkyDrive's SD-03 is a bit slicker than its earlier prototype aircraft, with a white exterior the company says was inspired by "white birds and the floating clouds in the sky." The SD-03 measures six feet high, 13 feet in length, and 13 feet wide. It features two sets of rotors on the front and two on the rear, with each powered by its own motor. The rotors can be shielded behind curved protectors so they don't risk hitting something (or someone). If it looks like a drone with a person in it, that's because that's basically what it is.

They're giant drones. The recent death of Kobe Bryant in a crashed helicopter may scare some away from the idea of flying around in what looks like a helicopter for one. But companies in the industry say eVTOLS are supposed to be safer because they have multiple rotors that function as fail-safes; if one stops working, the others are supposed to be capable of safely returning the aircraft back down to earth. Think of consumer drones from the likes of DJI but scaled up to carry a person or, in larger iterations, multiple people.

The public test of the SD-03 took place over a 2.5-acre test field owned by Toyota, and lasted four minutes. A human piloted the aircraft in circles but onboard software managed flight stability. That will be important if these types of aircraft are actually going to ferry around people who aren't experienced at operating an aircraft in turbulent conditions, or at all.

You won't be taking one anytime soon. Other players in the space include Kitty Hawk, an eVTOL startup backed by Google co-founder Sergey Brin. And Uber, which has partnered with Hyundai, Bell, and other companies to develop an air-taxi service.

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None of these projects seem to be close to a public debut, however. Any crash could set back eVTOLs by years or decades, helicopter commuting services used to exist in NYC before a fatal crash brought their demise, so companies are working slowly to ensure the highest possible safety. There are also logistical issues with building out the necessary infrastructure, like command and control centers that ensure aircraft don't, you know, crash into each other. Uber has said it expects any eVTOL air-taxi service to launch by 2028 at the soonest.

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By the end of the year, SkyDrive hopes to begin testing the SD-03 outside of test fields in Japan so it can prove the technology works in a variety of conditions.

Credit: inputmag.com

Uses For Drones

We often hear about the use of large drones by the military and others in the war on terror. Here are some of the ways drones are used by the civilian population.

Real Estate Sales

Originally used for high-end properties, drone video is becoming more and more popular with forward thinking agencies. Drones are used for commercial advertising and for residential MLS listings.

Sports Photography

Extreme sports photography and drone video has focused on skiing and base-jumping activities as well as other action-packed adventures.

Highway Monitoring

With roughly 4 million miles of highways crisscrossing the United States drones can be used for inspecting roads and bridges, surveying land with laser mapping and alerting officials to traffic jams and accidents.

Wildlife Research

Drones can be used to conduct aerial counts of an endangered species or monitor migrating herds which helps with conservation activities.

Atmospheric Research

Drones helped NASA better understand how water vapor and ozone interact above the tropics in their study of how changes in water vapor in the stratosphere can affect global climate.

Hunting

Drones with heat-sensing cameras find feral hogs at night that are destroying crops. The drones save time otherwise wasted wandering muddy fields in the dark. They can also be used to spot illegal hunting.

Disaster Relief

Drones have a wide range of applications for disaster relief, from entering radiation-filled "hot zones" where human access would be dangerous (after a nuclear accident, for example) to searching for survivors across a debris-filled landscape.

Environmental Compliance

Midnight dumping of toxic waste and other surreptitious activities are the bane of environmental law enforcement. But drones may prove to be a cost-effective solution to that problem.

Hurricane Hunting

Larger drones can charge into the heart of a storm, without risking human life and limb, to spy on storms as they evolve. The Global Hawk drones can stay aloft for 30 hours and fly 11,000 miles with their 116-foot wingspans. That lets them reach and stay in stormy areas that manned planes can't, performing valuable surveillance.

3-D Mapping

Small, lightweight drones may look like simple model airplanes, but they can survey landscapes with thousands of digital images that can be stitched together into 3-D maps.

Uses to date have been for Haitian relief efforts after Hurricane Sandy, by farmers seeking to manage far-flung crops and fields, by mining companies monitoring changes to open pit mines, and by festivals to monitor crowd size for security reasons.

Down on the Farm

The precision agriculture movement uses technology to monitor fields, increasing yields and saving money. Precision applications of pesticides, water, or fertilizers, which drones can help by identifying exactly where such resources are needed and delivering them there, is better for the environment and for a farmer's bottom line.

Drone cameras that spot where nitrogen levels are low or watch the growth of a specific field section can also help farmers. Drones with infrared light cameras can reveal plant health by reflecting how efficient photosynthesis is in various plants.

Search and Rescue

When Royal Canadian Mounted Police responded to a late-night rollover in a remote location, they found that the disoriented driver had wandered off. A ground search and an air ambulance helicopter with night-vision gear failed to find him.

But after a cell phone call from the injured victim gave a hint to his whereabouts, a drone with heat-sensing equipment, launched by the Mounties, found the victim before a potentially fatal night outdoors in subfreezing temperatures.

Credit: cbsnews.com and nationalgeographic.com