Nestled wonderfully in a lush Iowa cornfield sits a new automated John Deere tractor. These newer versions come equipped with satellite or wi-fi links that allow the driver quite a bit of freedom. The traditional hard work of farming has been given quite an upgrade as these tractors are able to automate the driving, fertilizing, and plowing. As outlined in his book, “The Fifth Domain” former chief of counter-terrorism on the National Security Council, Richard Clarke, details how they also sync up with John Deere headquarters. Now, the data can be received informing the company when a malfunction or breakdown is looming, and John Deere can then send somebody out to get ahead of the issues before they happen. Unfortunately, the tractors experienced numerous small issues in which John Deere had to respond and diagnose via a mobile repair team. The cost of such visits was billed to the farmer while they had their expensive, shiny tractor sitting in the middle of the field as they waited for John Deere and their digital keys. As this became extremely annoying and budget consuming, farmers began to search for a new means of bypassing the software and fixing their own tractors. Word got around that a Russian-speaking individual based in Ukraine was able to hack into the system in order to get around the factory system. The farmers were able to pay a small fee, download a software tool from their Russian interlocutor, hack into their own tractors, and fix the issue themselves. Problem solved…
As detailed in my previous post, we have already seen an experiment initiated through probing Americans and exploiting vulnerabilities. As we analyze the possibilities one can imagine that allowing Russians access to our autonomous systems is not a good thing. Can these hacks eventually start up the tractor and drive it through a farmer’s house? How would the farmer respond to this? By going after John Deere of course, and thus creating a bit of chaos within the heartland of America. Also, if they have the ability to hack autonomous tractors, we can probably assume that they can hack autonomous cars on our highways creating a host of devastating problems. It would also be conceivable that they can hack into the synced phone devices within that vehicle garnering access to synced credit cards, contacts, messages, emails, and anything else that is available through our smart phones. I believe we are far beyond the point of claiming ignorance and we all need to educate ourselves when implementing cyber security measures. If an increase in such cyber attacks take place, we can be assured that the people will respond by attacking both the company and the government, instead of the actual perpetrator. This naturally foments distrust among the population and only intensifies our issues at home while hackers continue to do their work. We all have a responsibility today as the times have and are changing rapidly. And maybe, the newer technology that allows for more relax time is not the best choice after all.
Wilks Wroasting 