New Delhi: In a significant cybersecurity revelation, the Central Government has confirmed that multiple major airports across India recently experienced GPS spoofing attempts — a sophisticated method of manipulating location signals. Union Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu informed the Lok Sabha that the incidents were detected near the airports in Delhi, Amritsar, Mumbai, and Kolkata.
Despite the seriousness of the threat, the minister assured that no flight operations or aviation safety systems were compromised, thanks to prompt action by authorities.
Some aircraft approaching Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport reported suspicious GPS anomalies while following satellite-based landing procedures. The moment the spoofing was detected, aviation authorities activated emergency protocols, ensuring all affected flights landed safely without disruption.
Since the DGCA made the reporting of GPS jamming and spoofing mandatory in November 2023, similar cases have been regularly flagged from:
- Kolkata
- Amritsar
- Mumbai
- Hyderabad
- Bengaluru
- Chennai
This pattern suggests an ongoing and widespread challenge to India’s aviation cybersecurity framework.
To counter these threats, the Airports Authority of India has rolled out robust cybersecurity measures across its networks. These improvements follow guidelines issued by the National Critical Information Infrastructure Protection Centre (NCIIPC) and CERT-In, India’s national cybersecurity agency.
GPS spoofing involves generating fake satellite signals to trick devices — including aircraft systems, vehicles, drones, and ships — into displaying false locations. Such interference can be dangerous if not quickly detected and mitigated.
The government’s confirmation has put the spotlight on the need for stronger digital safeguards as aviation becomes increasingly reliant on satellite-based navigation.
