Drones - Double Sided Sword! Hacker Controlled Drones is Spying on you?

It is interesting to know that a significant hike in ‘drone use’ around the world has lead to a new era of ‘drone jacking’ by cyber criminals.  Cyber security experts have warned that this could be one of the major threats in 2017.A recent report by  Bruce Snell, cyber security and privacy director at Intel Security said that hackers would be targeting drones used for deliveries, law enforcement, and film crews.  Recently both Amazon and UPS have announced plans to deliver packages via drones which are a potential target for cyber criminals.Last week Amazon announced that it had started a small private drone delivery trial in the UK. Even Dominos Pizza is planning to use the drone for delivering pizza.It is easy to spot a Shipping drones that is launching from a dedicated location. The area with regular drone traffic easily found, and criminals looking for "done jack" deliveries wait for the targets to spot. The drone can bring down to the ground if it is located allowing the criminal to steal the drone.Drones are turning out to be a major tool for shippers, law enforcement agencies, photographers, farmers, the media, and more. Intel Security expert said the concept of drone jacking was demonstrated at a security conference last year, where researchers indicated how effectively someone could take control of a toy drone.“Although taking over a kid’s drone may seem amusing and not that big an issue, once we look at the increase in drone usage the potential for problems starts to arise,” Snell reported.The report stressed on that many consumer drones lack adequate security, which makes it easy for an outside hacker to take control.Intel McAfee predicts to see drone jacking “toolkits” traded on the dark web in 2017.“Once these toolkits start making the rounds, it is just a matter of time before we see stories of hijacked drones and use it for some other physical attacks too or spying,” as per the report.So, companies must ensure all security measures while using the drone for delivering their products.