Hackers could use drones to carry out cyberattacks using WiFi, Bluetooth and other wireless connections, such as those used for contactless payment card transactions, cybersecurity experts warned at the Black Hat conference in Las Vegas. This will allow hackers to intercept information in private buildings in the same way as if it were happening in a public place, say a cafe.

One of the partners in the Bishop Fox computer security service, Francis Brown, notes that drones can be built into a kind of flying laptop. Bishop Fox developed a device that employees could use to check the connections of their devices and thus prevent them from being hacked. Drones can be used primarily for guest or short-range WiFi hacking, as well as for intercepting information from devices such as a Bluetooth keyboard.

According to one of the project researchers, David Latimer, most companies were not prepared for this kind of threat. “A drone could land on a roof and record what keys a person presses on a keyboard and also connect to the internal wireless network,” he says. As drones become more widespread, many organizations have begun to look for ways to ban their use over their buildings, especially after a drone crash near the White House.

Tokyo police officers and specialists from the University of Michigan have developed so-called drone catchers - large drones with nets. In turn, the American company Battelle has created a device called DroneDefender, which forces drones to land using radio waves. Other organizations are using less technologically advanced methods to neutralize drones. So, the Dutch police release eagles so that they catch drones with their claws.

Bishop Fox will present its research this week at its annual conference, where leading cybersecurity experts will talk about flaws in devices of everything from cars to elevators. The company will provide its version of the “defense” drone to other participants for free. However, it is impossible to make sure that it cannot be used to carry out cyber attacks. “In my opinion, it has been proven more than once that the pros here significantly outweigh the cons. Hackers have had these capabilities for a long time, and therefore developments like this only equalize the chances of the average security professional with the capabilities of hackers,” says Brown.

Translated by Ekaterina Postnikova

Hackers will use drones for cyberattacks