Aviation Security

    When you go to an airport nowadays, most of us will go through a TSA screening due to somewhat recent events that heightened security and caused a loss of life as well as trust in airliners. In order to regain trust and keep future tragedies from happening, airports implemented several layers of security. These security layers do what they are there to do, protect innocent people from terrorist attacks on airliners and at airports. But, what if the terrorist never went to the airport and devised a plan to cause havoc that required them to be there? 

    Due to advances in technology in aircraft, attacks are able to be carried out from the ground, miles away from an airport, if the terrorist is able to get their hands on the technology required. Some systems they are able to attack that are not attached to computers on the aircraft are reservation systems, flight traffic management systems, access control management systems, departure control systems, passport control systems, cloud-based airline data storage, hazardous materials transportation management, cargo handling and shipping (Kaspersen, 2016). These systems can disrupt a flight in many ways and have the potential to cause damage or loss of life. If a terrorist was able to gain direct access to computer based flight control systems, GPS-based navigation systems, fuel gauges and fuel consumption systems, or maintenance computers, they could disrupt a flight to an extent that could be irreversible. 

    In order to combat these threats, companies should think like attackers to picture how and when an attack would occur (Kaspersen, 2016). TSA intelligence can also prevent these attacks by finding these individuals or groups that plan these attacks and have the equipment or access to the equipment to do so. This also falls on Homeland Security and every other agency that is assigned to defending the US and it's citizens from terrorist threats. 

References 

Kaspersen, A. (2016, July 8). Four threats to aviation security – and four responses. Retrieved March 04, 2021, from https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2016/07/four-threats-to-aviation-security-and-four-responses/

TSA. (2017, August 01). Inside look: Tsa layers of security. Retrieved March 04, 2021, from https://www.tsa.gov/blog/2017/08/01/inside-look-tsa-layers-security