Hi-tech planes may be at risk of cyber hijacking, warn officials

US report exposes potential for hackers to take over a commercial plane while it is in flight

A Malaysia Airlines plane
(Image credit: MANAN VATSYAYANA/AFP/Getty Images)

Modern commercial planes with highly automated systems could be vulnerable to hackers armed with just a laptop on the ground, US officials have warned.

Investigators from the US Government Accountability Office (GAO) said it was theoretically possible for a hacker – on the aircraft or the ground – to commandeer an aircraft, put a virus into its flight control computers and jeopardise the safety of the flight.

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