Cheap drones can be used for sabotage

Even a small drone costing just a few hundred dollars can cause catastrophic disruption to key industrial systems, according to a leading technical expert at an industrial security firm.

Today, it is no longer enough to protect industrial complexes with fences, because the latest drones can fly over a target from up to five kilometres away. Navigated by an on-board camera, they can be easily lowered onto the roof of a building and, because they can carry small loads, hackers can use them to deliver a beacon into the facility’s perimeter that can jam industrial controls.

Cybercriminals can also hack wireless keyboards and mice with a transmitter attached to drones. That’s why everyone is being urged to use wired keyboards, and wireless systems in industrial facilities should have adequate redundancy to avoid interference.