Space Systems as the Weakest Link
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.3849/aimt.01409Abstract
Although it is widely believed that the space sector is one of the pillars of national security, in practice cosmic systems exist somewhat outside the area of critical infra-structures discussion. Cybersecurity of space systems does not differ significantly from industrial cybersecurity, however, the uniqueness of the sector and space technologies means that its vulnerability to digital incidents depends on a number of factors that does not occur anywhere else. The purpose of the article is to defend the thesis that space systems are the weakest link in critical infrastructure systems, because the level of their cybersecurity is still disproportionate to the level of their technological ad-vancement.References
MYSZONA-KOSTRZEWA, K. Satellite Navigation in the Light of International Law and the European Union (in Polish). In: Z. GALICKI, T. KAMIŃSKI, K. MYSZONA-KOSTRZEWA, ed. The Use of Space. World-Europe-Poland. War-saw: Sawpiauw, 2010. ISBN 978-83-927864-6-7.
U.S. Military Preparing for a War without GPS [online]. December 2017 [viewed 2019-09-01]. Available from: https://www.straitstimes.com/world/united-states/us-military-preparing-for-a-war-without-gps
SMITH, M. Trump National Security Strategy Promotes, Protects Space [online]. December 2017. [viewed 2019-09-01]. Available from: https://spacepolicyonline.com/news/trump-national-security-strategy-promotes-protects-space/
Report of the Commission to Assess United States National Security Space Man-agement and Organization [online]. January 2001. [viewed 2019-08-30]. Avail-able from: https://aerospace.csis.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/RumsfeldCommission.pdf
MYSZONA-KOSTRZEWA, K. Satellite Techniques and Security and Defense (in Polish). In: Legal Aspects of Space Activities. Warsaw: Redakcja naukowa, 2019. ISBN 978-83-65711-53-2.
Satellite Technology [online]. [viewed 2019-12-01]. Available from: https://www.encyclopedia.com/computing/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/satellite-technology
Number of Satellites in Orbit [online]. [viewed 2019-12-06]. Available from: https://www.statista.com/statistics/264472/number-of-satellites-in-orbit-by-operating-country/
KORTEPETER, D. It’s not Rocket Science: NASA Unit Hobbled by Amateurish Phishing Attack [online]. June 2019 [viewed 2019-09-05]. Available from: http://techgenix.com/nasa-jpl-phishing-attack/
What Is Phishing? (in Polish) [online]. [viewed 2019-09-04]. Available from: https://www.securelist.pl/threats/internal/7058, co_to_jest_phishing.html
Turla, a Cybercriminal Group, Uses Satellites to Achieve Anonymity (in Polish) [online]. September 2015. [viewed 2019-09-07]. Available from: https://www.kaspersky.pl/o-nas/informacje-prasowe/2485/ugrupowanie-cyberprzestepcze-turla-wykorzystuje-satelity-w-celu-osiagniecia-anonimowosci
Russian-Speaking Cyber Spies Use Satellites) (in Polish) [online]. [viewed 2019-09-07]. Available from: https://plblog.kaspersky.com/?s=Rosyjskoj%C4%99zyczni+Cyberszpiedzy+Wykorzystuj%C4%85+Satelity+[12]
Satellite Turla: Still Alive and Hiding in the Sky [online]. [viewed 2019-09-07]. Available from: https://media.kaspersky.com/pdf/SatTurla_Solution_Paper.pdf
The Russians Are Attacking Satellite Connections to Stay Anonymous Online (in Polish) [online]. September 2015. [viewed 2019-09-06]. Available from: https://niebezpiecznik.pl/post/rosjanie-atakuja-satelity-aby-zachowac-anonimowosc-w-sieci/
DALTON, A. Russia Hopes to Block Cruise Missile Attacks with Cell Towers [online]. October 2016. [viewed 2019-09-08]. Available from: https://www.engadget.com/2016/10/17/russia-jamming-cruise-missile-attacks-with-cell-towers/
The Sensitivity of the GPS Satellite Navigation System to Interference (in Polish) [online]. November 2019. [viewed 2019-09-08]. Available from: http://www.filambda.amw.gdynia.pl/2016/11/29/wrazliwosc-systemu-nawigacji-satelitarnej-gps-na-zaklocenia/
Iran Intercepted an American Spy Plane (in Polish) [online]. December 2011. [viewed 2019-09-15]. Available from: https://niebezpiecznik.pl/post/iran-przechwycil-amerykanski-samolot-szpiegowski/
ZIEMNICKI, P. The Fundamental Importance of Securing Satellites against Cyber Attacks (in Polish) [online]. February 2019. [viewed 2019-09-13]. Availa-ble from: https://www.space24.pl/analizy/fundamentalne-znaczenie-zabezpieczenia-satelitow-przed-cyberatakami-wywiad
BYRNE, D., D. MORGAN, K. TAN, B. JOHNSON and C. DORROS. Cyber De-fense of Space-Based Assets: Verifying and Validating Defensive Designs and Implementations. Procedia Computer Science, 2014, 28, pp. 522-530. DOI 10.1016/j.procs.2014.03.064.
U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission [online]. November 2011. [viewed 2019-09-15]. Available from: https://www.uscc.gov/sites/default/files/annual_reports/annual_report_full_11.pdf
NASA’s Management of the Deep Space Network [online]. March 2015. [viewed 2019-09-16]. Available from: https://oig.nasa.gov/docs/IG-15-013.pdf
Commission to Assess United States National Security Space Management and Organization [online]. January 2001. [viewed 2019-08-30]. Available from: https://aerospace.csis.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/RumsfeldCommission.pdf
Improving Critical Infrastructure Cybersecurity [online]. [viewed 2019-08-28]. Available from: https://www.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/publications/cisa_-_improving_critical_infrastructure_cybersecurity.pdf
AIA Announces First Cybersecurity Standard [online]. February 2013. [viewed 2020-02-28]. Available from: https://www.aia-aerospace.org/news/aia-announces-first-cyber-security-standard/
KING M. and S. GOGUICHVILI. Cybersecurity Threats in Space: A Roadmap for Future Policy [online]. [viewed 2021-04-05]. Available from: https://www.wilsoncenter.org/blog-post/cybersecurity-threats-space-roadmap-future-policy
Securing Civil Space [online]. [viewed 2019-08-26]. Available from: https://www.mitre.org/capabilities/cybersecurity/securing-civil-space
Securing Civil Space [online]. [viewed 2019-09-01]. Available from: https://www.mitre.org/capabilities/cybersecurity/securing-civil-space
What FERC Does [online]. [viewed 2019-09-01]. Available from: https://www.ferc.gov/about/what-ferc/what-ferc-does
ITU Global Cybersecurity Agenda (CGA) [online]. International Telecommunica-tion Union, 2007. [viewed 2019-09-02]. Available from: https://www.itu.int/osg/spuold/cybersecurity/gca/docs/global-cybersecurity-agenda-itu-17-may-2007.pdf
On Monday, the Launch of a Space Mission with Polish Participation (in Polish) [online]. March 2018. [viewed 2019-09-02]. Available from: http://naukawpolsce.pap.pl/aktualności/news%2C28912%2Cw-poniedzialek-start-kosmicznej-misji-z-polskim-udzialem.html
Polish Space Sector Catalogue of Selected Entities [online]. Warsaw: Polish Space Agency, 2018 [viewed 2021-03-26]. ISBN 978-83-64423-80-0. Available from: https://polsa.gov.pl/images/polski_sektor_kosmiczny_katalog_pl_eng/PODGLAD_PAK-KATALOG_EN_small.pdf
NASA Parts Selection List (NPSL) [online]. February 2016. [viewed 2019-09-02]. Available from: https://nepp.nasa.gov/npsl/
FALCO, G. Job One for Space Force: Space Asset Cybersecurity [online]. Cam-bridge: Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, 2018 [viewed 2019-07-26]. Available from: https://www.belfercenter.org/sites/default/files/files/publication/CSP%20Falco%20Space%20Asset%20-%20FINAL.pdf
CubeSat Launch Initiative [online]. [viewed 2019-09-03]. Available from: https://www.nasa.gov/directorates/heo/home/CubeSats_initiative
DAVID, L. Sweating the Small Stuff: CubeSats Swarm Earth Orbit [online]. July 2017. [viewed 2019-09-03]. Available from: https://www. scientificameri-can.com/article/sweating-the-small-stuff-cubesats-swarm-earth-orbit/
SCHRADIN, R. Government Space Leaders Look to Commercial Satellites for More Resilient Communications [online]. January 2016. [viewed 2019-09-03]. Available from: https://ses-gs.com/govsat/defense-intelligence/government-space-leaders-look-to-commercial-satellites-for-more-resilient-communications/
PULTAROVA, T. Could Cubesats Trigger a Space Junk Apocalypse? [online]. April 2017. [viewed 2019-09-03]. Available from: https://www.space.com/36506-cubesats-space-junk-apocalypse.html
CIESLAK, N. NIST Cybersecurity Framework Adoption on the Rise [online]. March 2016. [viewed 2019-09-20]. Available from: https://www.tenable.com/blog/nist-cybersecurity-framework-adoption-on-the-rise
Downloads
Published
License
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
1. Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
2. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
3. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work.
Users can use, reuse and build upon the material published in the journal for any purpose, even commercially.
