How many tech movies have you watched where an airplane passenger takes out their laptop and hacks into the flight controls to land the plane somewhere else?

It turns out that this is highly unlikely, as the plane’s systems are carefully segregated. For example, the pilots use something called the Aircraft Control Domain (which includes flight controls) and this is separate from the Passenger Information Entertainment Services Domain which is found in the cabin (where passengers sit). There have been recorded instances of the in-flight entertainment system being compromised and flashing up silly messages (by hackers), but this was considered as an insignificant threat.

There are many measures to prevent unauthorised access to an aeroplane’s software system. A recent US Government Accountability Office report on aircraft cybersecurity gives an example: “Airplanes use a weight switch in the wheels to verify that an airplane is on the ground before it will allow software changes to be uploaded to an airplane’s avionics systems. Such a system prevents software changes while an airplane is in flight.”

Moreover, isolation of systems, redundancy and fail-safes, secure communication, air-gapped systems, regulatory compliance   and cybersecurity initiatives are all measures which ensure a safe trip in the air.