Obama warns of vulnerabilities in air traffic control system

President Obama warned of potential vulnerabilities in the nation’s air traffic control system during his State of the Union address Tuesday.

The technology that is used to direct both passenger and cargo-carrying airplanes could be the target of a cyberattack, he said.

“We know hackers steal people’s identities and infiltrate private email,” Obama warned. “We know foreign countries and companies swipe our corporate secrets. Now our enemies are also seeking the ability to sabotage our power grid, our financial institutions, and our air traffic control systems. We cannot look back years from now and wonder why we did nothing in the face of real threats to our security and our economy.” 

To combat the electronic problems he said could fell the national aviation system and other networks, Obama touted an executive order he said would “strengthen our cyber defenses by increasing information sharing, and developing standards to protect our national security, our jobs, and our privacy.”

Obama added, however, that “Congress must act as well, by passing legislation to give our government a greater capacity to secure our networks and deter attacks.”

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