Much of our everyday life uses Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) to track, navigate, and monitor items in transit; GPS is the most well-known system. From pizza to retail packages to radioactive material, these systems use GNSS-derived position, navigation, and timing information to determine when, down to the minute, a shipment should arrive at its intended destination. However, this technology can be manipulated to direct delivery drivers to the wrong location as well as cause package tracking systems to display a false location and path. GNSS manipulation can cause important cargo to fall into the hands of someone who could do harm without the recipient or shipper even knowing till it’s too late.
Jamming and spoofing are the two manipulation methods used to trick GNSS systems. Jamming a GNSS device prevents the receiver from hearing the signals from the satellites required to operate. Several commercial products are available to protect against jamming. Spoofing, however, tricks a GNSS receiver into receiving and using false information; the receiver displays incorrect information as if it were legitimate, making it challenging to detect.
Researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory are designing a prototype device that reveals when a GPS signal is compromised by spoofing. The prototype operates independently from any other device in the vehicle that uses GPS signals, such as smartphones and navigation devices. Since all the GPS devices would be compromised during a spoofing attack, the prototype would notify the driver if a signal can't be trusted.
FEATURES OF THE PROTOTYPE
• Detects if a device is entering or leaving an area impacted by a GPS spoofer. Using the baseline information when the truck is turned on, the device will notice discrepancies with what is received and what is displayed to the driver.
• Requires only a power source and a GNSS antenna, making it easy to retrofit onto any vehicle.
Download the GNSS Spoofing fact sheet