Dayton Business Journal...
Computer virus hits U.S. military drones
Sunday, October 9, 2011
Joe Cogliano 

Computer hackers have apparently turned their sites to unmanned aerial vehicles as UAVs, or drones, operated by the U.S. military have been infected with a mysterious computer virus. 

Wired.com on reports that a computer virus that logs every keystroke of pilots has infected Predator and Reaper drones flying overseas missions. 

Multiple tries to remove the virus have been unsuccessful and military network specialists aren’t sure if it was placed there intentionally or just happened to make its way into UAV networks, Wired reported. The article also said that despite widespread use, UAVs are known to have security flaws and many don’t encrypt the video they transmit to U.S. ground troops. 

Click here for slideshow of next generation weapons systems, including new drones. 

“We keep wiping it off, and it keeps coming back,” a source familiar with the network infection told Wired. “We think it’s benign. But we just don’t know.” 

The drones at issue are the type used by both the military special forces as well as the Central Intelligence Agency    for strikes on terrorists and enemy forces in Afghanistan, Pakistan and other places, including in Yemen. 

The effort to make UAV’s more secure could have at least some impact on the Dayton region, which has been building working to build a mass of research and development work as well as production capabilities. 

Dayton is home to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base    , which houses many research and development units that work closely with the drones being used by the military. Local workers could play a role in trying to fix the computer virus. 

UAV research and development already has sparked some recent industry growth in the Dayton region. 

In February, McLean, Va.-based Science Applications International Corp    . announced plans to add hundreds of jobs in the Dayton region, in large part because of the Air Force’s focus on UAV research and development in the area. 

And if Ohio is chosen by the FAA for UAV air space, the Wilmington Air Park or Springfield Air National Guard Base could benefit, boosting the local economy. 

Among the major players that have a presence in the Dayton region and could grow further here depending on the FAA decision are Boeing Co.    , which started a UAV unit several years ago and has a Dayton office; and Lockheed Martin Corp.    , which makes the Desert Hawk and Samurai UAVs and also has a local office. 

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