Fake Aircraft, Real Threats: Training Air Traffic Controllers for Cyberattacks

As part of the modernisation of air traffic management, a growing number of infrastructures and technologies are being deployed to improve air traffic services. While these developments can improve situation awareness and operational efficiency, they also come along with increasing cybersecurity risks. This study presents a half-day training concept for air traffic controllers to identify cyberattacks exploiting ADS-B vulnerabilities. Eight experienced Swedish Air Traffic Controllers (ATCOs) participated in three simulation runs using the Attack Simulator, a cybersecurity training platform that simulates various cyberattacks. Performance was measured by the correct identification of six probabilistically occurring attacks, with weighted scores reflecting the difficulty of each event. Knowledge transfer through briefing and video-based training aimed to educate ATCOs about cyberattacks that they could realistically face during their duties. Subjective assessments of situation awareness, workload, and stress were generally acceptable. Results suggest that training significantly improves ATCOs’ ability to respond to cyberattacks.