Hacking and securing the AR.Drone 2.0 quadcopter: investigations for improving the security of a toy

Johann-Sebastian Pleban; Ricardo Band; Reiner Creutzburg

doi:10.1117/12.2044868

18 February 2014 Hacking and securing the AR.Drone 2.0 quadcopter: investigations for improving the security of a toy

Johann-Sebastian Pleban, Ricardo Band, Reiner Creutzburg

Proceedings Volume 9030, Mobile Devices and Multimedia: Enabling Technologies, Algorithms, and Applications 2014; 90300L (2014) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2044868
Event: IS&T/SPIE Electronic Imaging, 2014, San Francisco, California, United States

Abstract

In this article we describe the security problems of the Parrot AR.Drone 2.0 quadcopter. Due to the fact that it is promoted as a toy with low acquisition costs, it may end up being used by many individuals which makes it a target for harmful attacks. In addition, the videostream of the drone could be of interest for a potential attacker due to its ability of revealing confidential information. Therefore, we will perform a security threat analysis on this particular drone. We will set the focus mainly on obvious security vulnerabilities like the unencrypted Wi-Fi connection or the user management of the GNU/Linux operating system which runs on the drone. We will show how the drone can be hacked in order to hijack the AR.Drone 2.0. Our aim is to sensitize the end-user of AR.Drones by describing the security vulnerabilities and to show how the AR.Drone 2.0 could be secured from unauthorized access. We will provide instructions to secure the drones Wi-Fi connection and its operation with the official Smartphone App and third party PC software.

Citation Download Citation

Johann-Sebastian Pleban, Ricardo Band, and Reiner Creutzburg "Hacking and securing the AR.Drone 2.0 quadcopter: investigations for improving the security of a toy", Proc. SPIE 9030, Mobile Devices and Multimedia: Enabling Technologies, Algorithms, and Applications 2014, 90300L (18 February 2014); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2044868

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