Running head: GLOBAL POSITIONING SYSTEMS

Global Positioning Systems

BUSI512: Managerial Information Technology

Key Term: Global Positioning Systems

Definition: According to Haag, Baltzan, and Phillips (2008) a global positioning system (GPS) is “a device that determines current latitude, longitude, speed, and direction of movement.” (p. 188).

According to Dictionary.com (2008), a global positioning system (GPSP is “a global system of U.S. navigational satellites developed to provide precise positional and velocity data and global time synchronization for air, sea, and land travel.”

Article Summary: “Secure Tracking for Critical Applications” by Chris Wullems, Alessandro Pozzobon, and Oscar Pozzobon

In their article, Wullems and the Pozzobons discuss the importance of safeguarding Global Position System (GPS) tracking applications against security threats. They explain how users should be educated on the weaknesses in the technology so they can be aware of the proper procedures and tools to protect themselves.

The authors start off by explaining the safety and security advantages of GPS technology with regards to vehicle tracking and remote monitoring systems. After briefly discussing those advantages, they then segue into the downside of the technology, and the inherent dangers involved in failing to adequately secure the technology. They refer to the technology as “a double-edged sword” without adequate security and discuss how rivals or terrorists could undermine or sabotage the organization through the unauthorized use of the organization’s own GPS tracking systems.

Tracking systems are excellent tools for monitoring vehicle payload information, location, and emergency information. They can be of considerable value during emergency situations when timeliness is of utmost importance. They do have many vulnerabilities, however, which could become serious threats to financial and personal security. These vulnerabilities include wireless communication systems, radio-navigation systems (including GPS), on-board vehicle and asset tracking units, messaging and data protocols, and the monitoring of center information systems, the latter of which can easily fall victim to simple Trojan horse viruses. (p. S2)

The article then moves on to the design of tracking systems and how they should best be protected, including describing the ways in which the systems could be attacked. Tey include “low-level attacks” which involve antenna cable cutting to “medium- and high-level attacks” which include radio jamming and signal simulation. The authors then describe high-level requirements for critical application tracking, including warning of emergency situations; detecting tampering situations regarding vehicular on-board units (OBUs); the survivability of communications for systems functionality; communication integrity; and positioning system survivability. (p. S2)

The authors then discuss communication technologies in detail, highlighting the factors that “affect the robustness and survivability of communications from the OBU to the operations center.” (p. S3) They go into detail regarding the environment and how it is a major component in deciding the types of communications systems that should be used. They discuss privacy and integrity, and the importance of taking steps to ensure both factors. Redundancy is also discussed in detail, the authors’ expressing the insufficiency of utilizing a single form of communication technology in most cases.

The article then moves onto satellite providers, discussing the main types, geostationary (GEO) and low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellites, and focusing on the latter ones. The authors discuss the advantages that LEO systems (up to 1,500 km in altitude) have over GEO systems (up to 35,800 km in altitude) for tracking applications. They focus on three main types of systems, discussing each in detail: ORBCOMM, Globalstar, and Iridium, the latter of which is the most reliable. (p. S5-S6)

The authors then discuss various technologies that can be utilized to secure GPS systems. They discuss the two types of disruptions that affect Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) integrity, which are unintentional and intentional disruptions. Various systems could cause unintentional GNSS disruptions, and the authors go into that into detail. They focus more on intentional system disruptions that “present a real threat against safety-critical applications such as hazardous-materials tracking.” (p. S6) The threat presented by terrorists and hackers has created a demand for technologies to prevent or contain intentional system disruptions, including GPS jamming and GPS signal spoofing situations. They authors go into details regarding techniques to prevent against such unauthorized violations.

The authors discuss the next generation of GPS technology, including the development of the Galileo satellite navigation system, which will enhance system integrity and security. They discuss the various systems in detail, discussing the protection advantages these systems will have over current systems. (p. S7)

Moving on to GNSS security services, the authors discuss the advantages of their use for various purposes. They discuss the three categories of GNSS security services as: Navigation Data Authentication and Cryptographic Integrity Protection Mechanisms, Signal Access Control Mechanisms, and Navigation Data Access Control Mechanisms. The Navigation Data Authentication and Cryptographic Integrity Protections Mechanisms include Navigation Message Authentication (NMA) which is “designed to overcome spoofing.” (p. S8) Signal Access Control mechanisms prevent unauthorized users from accessing GPS signals, usually through spreading code encryption (SCE). The authors find that SCE, combined with NMA, “provide the best protection against spoofers.” (p. S8) The Navigation Data Access Control Mechanisms control and restrict access to the navigation data stream through encryption. None of these security services for these next-generation GPS systems will be available to the civilian marketplace in the foreseeable future.

The authors close down their article with a system overview, describing the development of “a flexible architecture…to support the requirements of companies seeking a robust tracking solution.” (p. S8) They describe this architecture in detail before moving on to future security, and the advantages Galileo will have on performance and security in the GPS/GNSS arena. The authors compare the future of GNSS security to trends previously seen in IT security, and they predict similar attacks on the infrastructure from hackers and terrorists, despite common GPS analysts’ beliefs that attacks are improbable because of the systems’ innate complexities. The authors counter this belief with the argument that the “rapid growth of GNSS applications in recent years will likely increase the number of applications in which security exploits could result in risk to life or financial damage.” (p. S9) The authors close by pointing out that the cost of equipment that can be used to mount such attacks has decreased considerably as of late, which, combined with the increase in the number of applications, will results in more attacks against GNSS applications.

Discussion:

The Global Positioning System (GPS) is the most advanced and most reliable navigation system in the history of mankind. It is a “space-based radio navigation system that provides reliable positioning, navigation, and timing services to civilian users on a continuous worldwide basis --- freely available to all.” (gps.gov, 2008, web article) The GPS system is a network of satellites that transmit signals to GPS receivers which will pinpoint the exact location of the receiver. This all-weather technology is available globally at all times of the day.

The idea for GPS-type position indicators had existed for quite some time, even in the late 1930s, but it was focused on land-based radio navigation systems as opposed to space-based (the technology to launch satellites had not existed. These systems came to fruition in the early 1940’s (LORAN, for instance), but by the late 1950’s and the launch of Sputnik, U.S. scientists had the idea of creating a space-based radio navigation system. Throughout the 1960’s and early 1970’s, several space-based navigation systems were developed and implemented in the United States by the Department of Defense; however, they had limited value with regards to real-time navigation. By 1978, the first GPS satellite was launched and within a short time, the system was operational for the U.S. military. By the early-1980s, President Ronald Reagan declared the GPS system to be available for civilian use around the world for the common good.

GPS technology has revolutionized the business world in many ways. Many companies use such technologies as RFID to determine the exact location of packages, customer luggage, or company assets. Many companies with mobile workforces utilize GPS technology to track employees or vehicles, such as those companies with vehicular fleets, such as bus or taxi services. GPS technology assists law enforcement in surveillance or the location of stolen vehicles. GPS or RFID tags on livestock assist farmers in tracking or locating specific animals. I have experience with RFID technology as an airline manager; my former employer utilizes it to track baggage, which helps minimize lost-luggage situations, as well as better alleviating such situations with real-time knowledge, therefore increasing customer satisfaction, decreasing costs, and assisting with brand protection.

There are many benefits in the business world by using GPS technology, most notably financial savings from increased efficiency. The successful implementation of GPS and RFID technology has “forced business partners through the [supply] chain to rethink their strategies as well as change the nature of their relationships with suppliers and customers. Companies that have made the shift have benefited from reduced operating expenses, increased revenue growth, and improved customer levels.” (Rodriguez, 2006, p. 79) In the construction industry, “RFID technology has been found suitable for identification purposes in tracking hundreds of materials in harsh environments.” (Jongchul, Haas, & Caldas, 2006, p.912) Increased usage of the GPS system in aviation can assist the aviation industry by allowing pilots “to operate within a smaller navigational field, thus increasing the number of concurrent flights possible – and saving fuel and costs in the process.” (Kvalheim & Anderson, 2007, p. 56)

From personal experience as a private pilot, I probably understand the innate value of GPS technology more than most people. When I first started flying as a high school student in the late 1980s, the only navigational system the aircraft I flew had on-board was a VHF Omni-directional Radio Range (VOR) receiver, which intercepted “radials” from various land-based VOR stations in the area. While it was not an outlandishly complicated system, navigating by VOR was somewhat tedious and unpleasant, especially considering how you had to fly the plane and navigate with this antiquated system simultaneously. The pilot had to “intercept radials” transmitted by the VOR station (at least two) and draw lines on your map from each of those radials out via the direction (in degrees) of the signal. When this happened, one could pinpoint exactly where he or she was because the lines would cross at the location of the aircraft on the map. Navigation by calculating wind-speed, wind direction, aircraft speed, time, utilizing the VOR technology, and watching for ground-based landmarks is called “dead reckoning.” When my flying club upgraded to a nicer aircraft, it had a LORAN system in it, which gave the approximate location of the aircraft from the airport in distance and direction. The LORAN system was a nice feature at the time and a considerable improvement to the VOR, but it still fell far, far short of what GPS technology would later do for pilots.

By the late 1990’s, GPS technology had become affordable for the average pilot, and it became “the” way to navigate for private pilots. GPS technology took all of the work out of navigation for pilots; one always knew where he or she was in real-time when using a GPS, because he or she could constantly see his or her exact location on a digital map. There has been some concern as of late regarding the over-reliance of pilots on GPS technology as “the introduction of GPS technology has been associated with a level of complacency, to the extent that pilots become convinced of the veracity of the information, despite indicators to the contrary.” (Wiggins, 2007, p.251)

By the early 2000s, GPS technology had become a reality for automobile navigation as well. I purchased a car in 2001 that had a GPS built into the vehicle, which was part of the OnStar service I had. I could verbally contact OnStar via a satellite linkup from the vehicle and, utilizing GPS tracking technology, they could pinpoint my exact location, run a diagnostics check on my engine, and unlock my car doors via satellite. I also recently received a portable car GPS (with a navigation map screen) as a gift, and it is a staple part of my travel experience; it has truly taken the work out of land navigation as well.

Despite the many benefits GPS technology has created for modern society, there are considerable ethical and legal dilemmas concerning potential abuses of GPS technology by the government, corporations, and private citizens with regards to individual concerns “such as privacy, eavesdropping, stalking, or invasive advertising.” (Gilbert, 2007, p.5) In March 2008, “Federal law enforcement attempts to use cell phones as tracking devices were rebuked by lower court judges, who say that government cannot get real-time tracking information on citizens without showing probable cause.” (Junglas & Watson, 2008, p.65) Many Americans are concerned with the misuse of GPS technology by the U.S. government in violation of their Fourth Amendments rights. They fear that the technology could be misused and turned into a tool for tyranny by the U.S. government if not placed in check by legislative constraints. They argue GPS privacy concerns with “if we continue to allow the Court’s Fourth Amendment law to be interpreted in a limited fashion that reads the amendment’s protections into oblivion, George Orwell’s 1984 will become a much more likely version of our future.” (Hutchins, 2007, p.465)

Furthermore, sophisticated electronic criminal infiltration, interception, or jamming of governmental or corporate GPS tracking signals by rivals or terrorists could cause considerably financial damage or loss of life to an organization or individuals. (Wullems, Pozzobon, & Pozzobon, 2006, p. S2) Securing GPS technology from increasingly sophisticated hackers and terrorists is a major issue at the moment.

In conclusion, GPS technology has revolutionized the world in many ways, but technological security advances and legislative controls concerning privacy and security need to remain at the forefront. Proper use of this amazing technology will continue to have profound effects on the business world, as well as on private citizens, but it is important that the potential for improper usage of this helpful technology is minimized.

References

Gilbert, F. (2007) No Place to Hide? Compliance and Contractual Issues in the Use of Location-Aware Technologies. Journal of Internet Law, 11, 2, p. 3-13. Retrieved from the Business Source Premier database, http://web.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.liberty.edu:2048/ehost/pdf?vid=5&hid=102&sid=46507879-5934-4351-883d-22ff1ef8fc02%40sessionmgr104

Haag S., Baltzan, P., Phillips, A. (2008). Business Driven Technology. New York: McGraw-Hill Irwin.

Hutchins, R.D. (2007) Tied Up In Knotts? GPS Technology and the Fourth Amendment. UCLA Law Review, 55, 2, p. 409-465. Retrieved on August 7, 2008, from the Business Source Premier database, http://web.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.liberty.edu:2048/ehost/pdf?vid=5&hid=102&sid=46507879-5934-4351-883d-22ff1ef8fc02%40sessionmgr104

Jongchul, S., Haas, C.T., Caldas, C.H. (2006) Tracking the Location of Materials on Construction Job Sites. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, 132, 9, p. 911-918. Retrieved on August 7, 2008, from the Business Source Premier database, http://web.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.liberty.edu:2048/ehost/pdf?vid=8&hid=102&sid=46507879-5934-4351-883d-22ff1ef8fc02%40sessionmgr104

Junglas, I.A., Watson, R.T. (2008) Location-based Services. Communications of the ACM, 51, 3, p. 65-69. Retrieved on August 6, 2008, from the Business Source Premier database, http://web.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.liberty.edu:2048/ehost/pdf?vid=4&hid=102&sid=46507879-5934-4351-883d-22ff1ef8fc02%40sessionmgr104

Kvalheim, K.A., Andersen, H. (2007) A More Direct Route. Civil Engineering, 77, 12, p. 56-61. Retrieved on August 7, 2008, from the Business Source Premier database, http://web.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.liberty.edu:2048/ehost/pdf?vid=4&hid=102&sid=46507879-5934-4351-883d-22ff1ef8fc02%40sessionmgr104

Rodriguez, W. (2006) E-Business Operations Shift: From Supply Chain Management to Sense-and-Response Systems. Journal of Internet Commerce, 5, 4, p. 73-87. Retrieved on August 7, 2008, from the Academic Search Premier database, http://web.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.liberty.edu:2048/ehost/pdf?vid=8&hid=106&sid=a04bb5b6-6369-4faa-82e0-2eb201b1a09c%40sessionmgr102

Wiggins, M. (2007) Perceived GPS Use and Weather-Related Decision Strategies Among Pilots. International Journal of Aviation Psychology, 17, 3, p. 249-264. Retrieved from the Academic Search Premier database, http://web.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.liberty.edu:2048/ehost/pdf?vid=8&hid=106&sid=a04bb5b6-6369-4faa-82e0-2eb201b1a09c%40sessionmgr102

Wullems, C., Pozzobon, A., Pozzobon, O. (2006) Secure Tracking for Critical Applications. Geospatial Solutions, 16, 8, p. S2-S9. Retrieved on August 7, 2008, from the Business Source Premier database, http://web.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.liberty.edu:2048/ehost/pdf?vid=8&hid=102&sid=46507879-5934-4351-883d-22ff1ef8fc02%40sessionmgr104