GPS drone spoofers are used in counter-UAS (unmanned aerial systems) applications to mitigate unauthorized drone threats.
GNSS spoofing technologies operate by over-powering legitimate GNSS satellite signals, such GPS, GLONASS, Galileo and Beidou used by drones to navigate, and replacing them with spurious signals instead.
Drone GPS spoofing devices may form part of a complete C-UAS sysytem, which may also include radar-based and electro-optic detection systems, drone capture nets, or hard-kill kinetic effector devices.
What is GPS Spoofing?
GPS drone spoofers emit stronger signals on GNSS frequencies similar to GPS jammers. However, these signals are intended to mimic legitimate positioning and navigation information, thus fooling the drone into thinking that its current location is different to its actual location.
These fake signals can be used to direct the drone away and divert it from its intended trajectory. They can also be used to make the receiver think that the drone is in a geofenced or no-fly area, which may cause the aircraft to immediately stop flying.
Risks & Benefits
GNSS drone spoofers may be used to target autonomous drones that are not affected by RF signal jammers since they are not transmitting or receiving signals between themselves and a GCS (ground control station).
Illegal in many countries, GPS spoofing can potentially pose risk to life and property by impacting systems other than drones, such as autonomous vehicle navigation and other technologies that depend on accurate GPS signals to operate, including aviation and telecom systems.
