GPS jamming is no longer a limited combat action in war zones but has become a pervasive threat across the globe, where positioning systems – the foundation of transportation, finance and security – are being turned into invisible battlefields by countries with advanced military electronics.
GPS becomes the invisible battlefield
Amid growing geopolitical tensions, Iran and Israel are both taking advantage of their strategic positions and are gradually turning to a new form of warfare: mass GPS jamming.
According to a report by Windward Maritime AI, from June 12 to 15, about 1,000 vessels moving through the Strait of Hormuz, including 97 oil tankers and 110 cargo ships, were affected by GPS jamming hotspots near Iranian ports such as Asaluyeh and Bandar Abbas, as well as off the coast of Oman.
A series of reports also recorded GPS signal interference and spoofing appearing in Israel, Palestine and spreading to neighboring countries such as Lebanon.
The Strait of Hormuz has become a chokepoint in the Middle East war, as any disruption there could have serious consequences for energy markets and the global economy (Photo: Getty).
The initial jamming operations were believed to have been carried out by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), aiming to disrupt navigation satellite systems (GNSS) and AIS, vital tools for ships to ensure maritime safety at sea.
For land targets, the tactic aims to disable the location capabilities of civilian and military equipment in combat zones, but has serious consequences when it goes beyond the borders of conflict.
The bottom line is that international commercial air and maritime traffic, which relies heavily on satellite positioning, is being put at high risk by losing the ability to determine precise location.
GPS: A Critical But Vulnerable Platform
GPS ( Global Positioning System ) is a global positioning system owned and operated by the United States, with a network of about 30 satellites operating continuously around the Earth.
Devices such as airplanes, ships, smartphones and banking systems rely on GPS signals to locate and synchronize time.
However, the very specification of GPS includes a weak and easily overwhelmed signal, making it susceptible to jamming or spoofing.
In jamming, a device that emits a stronger signal on the same frequency will make it impossible for GPS receivers to receive satellite signals. In spoofing cases, the transmitter will send out fake GPS signals, tricking the receiver into getting the wrong location.
These are two common electronic warfare techniques that both Iran and Israel are believed to be using to serve military campaigns, but at the same time unintentionally (or intentionally) endanger civilian traffic systems in the region.
Huge impact on aviation and shipping industries
GPSJam.org , run by John Wiseman, tracks and maps areas with erratic GPS signals. Areas with severe interference, including Beirut, the capital of Lebanon, have seen repeated reports of lost GPS signals from aircraft.
The ADS-B Exchange database records several commercial flights affected while taking off from Tel Aviv or flying over southern Lebanon. According to a report from the Lebanese Air Traffic Management Center, there were cases of severe navigation errors that led to civilian aircraft being misdirected, increasing the risk of airspace violations and collisions.
In the maritime sector, reports from the Mediterranean and East Asia show that ships also face “jumpy” positioning, causing loss of control of their journey and increasing the risk of accidents or oil spills due to position deviation.
A crew member performs a pre-flight check on an Airbus A320 (Photo: Wikipedia).
Not only the Middle East, the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) also recorded an increase in GPS interference in Eastern Europe, especially the Black Sea region, Poland, the Baltic region... with suspicions that the source is from Russia in the context of the conflict with Ukraine that has not cooled down.
According to EASA, GPS spoofing incidents have increased sharply in the past three years and are undermining aviation safety. EASA Director General Luc Tytgat called for improvements in aircraft equipment to detect and counter signal interference early.
Without timely monitoring, positioning and diplomatic intervention, GPS failure would expose civil aviation and shipping to potential disaster.
Source: https://dantri.com.vn/khoa-hoc/chien-su-hien-dai-buoc-vao-khong-gian-so-gps-bi-bi-bien-thanh-vu-khi-20250624081244491.htm
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