GPS Spoofing Traced To Iran
Middle East GPS spoofing seems to have an epicenter...
The source of massive GPS spoofing signals has been traced outside of Iran’s capitol city, Tehran, according to published reports. A University of Texas student was responsible for the discovery using equipment on the International Space Station from the Radionavigation Lab at UT, the report said.
Since at least September, commercial and business aircraft in the Middle East have experienced navigation failures after receiving spoofed GPS broadcasts—the replacement of accurate position data with false coordinates.
“The attacks on GPS in the Middle East that have tricked many aircraft into drifting of course emphasize the increased sophistication and quantity of these threats,” said Joshua Morales, StarNav CEO. “I am of the opinion that we need to increase the number GPS-independent sources that are used by the navigation system. By doing this, you increase the domain the threat has to attack. This reduces the likelihood of the drift off course being successful.”
A website called OPSGROUP, which has a membership of thousands of pilots, dispatchers, controllers and other aviation professionals, told Forbes that commercial aircraft using Airway UMB688 in northern Iraq have been victims of GPS spoofing.
It’s no surprise that the interference is coming from Iran, said Dana Goward, Resilient Navigation & Timing Foundation president. “Tehran has a long history of interfering with GPS signals. Also, they seem to have established a version of Loran to reduce their own reliance on navigation and timing signals from space,” he said. “And in some ways it is not surprising they don't seem to be intentionally drawing aircraft off course, merely trying to deny GPS service. This is a good reminder to everyone one that receivers will react to interference in different ways.”
Goward said that GPS and other satnav signals are fairly fragile. “Any kind of interference, accidental or intentional could result in tragedy,” he said.
So far, reactions to the spoofing attacks have been limited by the United States and other governments.
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Users Don’t Like Google Maps’ New Colors
Google Maps’ new color palette has users comparing it to Apple AAPL 0.00%↑ and a number of other competitors. While users first noticed the change in colors back in September, according to published reports, it looks like the company has made the color scheme available permanently.
Most media reports have been negative, basically saying that Google Maps, while not perfect, had a solid, and very readable, color scheme (and some users on Reddit and Twitter have also complained about the new version). Now, it’s as bland as the next mapping company:
Elizabeth Laraki, who helped design Google Maps, also doesn’t like the new look. “I don’t love it. It feels colder, less accurate and less human. But more importantly, they missed a key opportunity to simplify and scale,” Laraki said, in an X post (formerly Twitter).
Laraki said that while Google’s goal was to improve usability and make the maps more readable, it did the opposite. “Admittedly, I do think major roads, traffic, and trails stand out more now. But the colors of water and parks/open spaces blend together,” she said. “And to me, the palette feels colder and more computer generated. But color choices aside, if the goal was better usability, the team missed a big opportunity.”
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Runway Announces $50 Million in Debt Commitment to GPS Tracking Company
Runway Growth Capital has announced a $50 million debt commitment to Linxup, a St. Louis-based GPS tracking, telematics and fleet management provider. Runway said it will refinance Linxup’s existing debt and provide additional working capital.
Linxup which used to be called Agilis Systems, offers vehicle tracking, asset tracking and AI-enabled dash cams to small and medium-sized companies. The company offers such solutions as reporting, alerting and dashboards to commercial vehicle fleets.
In addition, the company offers video telematics with dash cameras and even lawn mower tracking. In 2020, Linxup signed a deal with Ford Data Services to integrate Ford vehicle data into its telematics software.
The company, with a satellite office in Charlotte, N.C., has 30,000 customers and says it tracks more than 200,000 vehicles, assets and equipment.
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Other Location News
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Top News:
✔ U-blox Unveils its “Focus – Innovate – Execute” Strategy. The Swiss company will “discontinue future cellular chipset development.” In addition, it will “increase focus on highly differentiated Positioning business by substantially shifting R & D teams to [Positioning] innovations.”
🤨 China's GPS-Like BeiDou Navigation System Recognised as Global Standard for Commercial Aviation in 'Important Milestone.' “China’s BeiDou system has been recognized by the International Civil Aviation Organization.”
😮 Commercial Flights Are Experiencing 'Unthinkable' GPS Attacks and Nobody Knows What to Do. “New "spoofing" attacks resulting in total navigation failure have been occurring above the Middle East for months, which is "highly significant" for airline safety.”
😦 Tech CEO Austin Russell's Bid To Buy Forbes Fails. “Luminar LAZR 0.00%↑ founder and CEO Austin Russell’s bid to buy Forbes Global Media Holdings has ended. Integrated Whale Media Investments, the Hong Kong-based parent company of Forbes, terminated the agreement with Russell after he failed to secure the ideal group of investors needed to close the deal.”
👍 Satellogic Receives NOAA License to Expand U.S. Government Business. “Satellogic SATL 0.00%↑ announced that it has been granted a remote sensing license by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
☹ Layoffs and Bankruptcies Pile Up in Logistics Amid Shocking Downturn. “Since early in 2022, many companies have gone out of business or severely cut back by letting employees go. Some of those companies were household names in the industry, such as Yellow Corp. and Convoy. Many others were much smaller, not known perhaps beyond their headquarters location. Nonetheless, the bankruptcies, closures and layoffs have piled up, and the financial and human losses have taken a toll.”
📌 Garmin Alpha LTE GPS Tracker Arrives. The Garmin Alpha LTE GRMN 0.00%↑ is now available in some European countries. This gadget, which attaches to your dog's collar, is designed to let you track your pet.”
Maps:
🤷♂️ Unpopular Opinion: The New Google Maps Looks Good on CarPlay. “But despite the consensus that Google Maps now looks ugly, outdated, and cold, I believe the new colors make more sense on CarPlay and Android Auto.”
📌 Esri Enhances ArcGIS Platform with New Services for Developers: Places and Data Hosting Introduced.
🤞 OpenAI Has a New Chairman: Meet Bret Taylor, Tech Genius Behind Google Maps, CEO of Salesforce. “Bret Taylor, the new chairman of OpenAI, co-created Google Maps and held significant positions at Facebook, where he once was the CTO.”
😐 This Navigation App Just Showed Google Maps and Waze How It's Done. “Sygic has recently updated its Android application specifically to make it easier to use on the mobile device.”
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Connected and Autonomous Vehicles:
🙁 Bruised Cruise Shifts Gears in Scaled-Down Robotaxi Comeback Plan. Alain Kornhauser: “Really?? Cruise does essentially everything right with its automation in dealing with a situation that is as rare as rare can get and because its public relations department failed to be completely forthright, it is ‘cutting spending.’ I hope the cut is limited to closing its public relations department.”
😕 Cruise Testing Continues in Japan, Dubai, Even as Vehicles Parked in US.
👍 BMW’s $6,400 Level 3 Automated Driving System Goes Live Next Year In Germany. “Dubbed BMW Personal Pilot L3, the advanced driving assistant system is half the price of Tesla’s so-called FSD.”
😮 Pitchbook Says China Overtakes U.S. in Autonomous Vehicle Investments:
🚚 Einride Deploys First Full Time, Daily Autonomous Operations In Partnership With GE Appliances.
😐 Florida Judge Finds Tesla, Elon Musk Knew of Defective Autopilot System. “There is “reasonable evidence” to conclude that Tesla and its officers, including CEO Elon Musk, knew its vehicles had defective Autopilot systems but still allowed the cars to be driven in areas “not safe for that technology,” a Florida judge found.”
😕 Tesla 'Faces Ban' on Selling Self-Driving Cars in Britain. “The Department for Transport will prevent carmakers from describing vehicles as “self-driving” or “driverless” unless their systems are approved under changes coming as soon as next year.”
Drones:
🛩 Here's the Counter-Drone Platforms Now Deployed in Ukraine.
😦 The Pentagon Is Moving Toward Letting AI Weapons Autonomously Decide To Kill Humans. “The U.S. is among countries arguing against new laws to regulate AI-controlled killer drones.”
Other Stuff:
🏆 Garmin Wins Six CES 2024 Innovation Awards.
🥇 Continental’s Radar Vision Parking Named CES 2024 Innovation Award Honoree.
🏭 Comcast’s MachineQ Launches Asset Utilization Solution for Enterprises.
Financial:
✔ BeWhere Reports Third Quarter 2023 Results.
💲 Insider Sell Alert: Director Kaigham Gabriel Sells Shares of Trimble. “Director Kaigham Gabriel sold 4,364 shares of the company, a transaction that prompts a closer look into the insider's activities and the potential implications for investors.”
✔ Ituran Location and Control Approves the Distribution of Cash Dividend.
✔ MetAlert Reports Third Quarter 2023 Summary.
✔ RoboSense Achieves Record-Breaking Sales in Q3.
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Location Industry Briefs
Send your news releases to kdennehy@driverlessreport.com. Go to www.locationbusinessnews.com for more news and an archive of stories.
NextNav Names Sorond as CEO
NextNav NN 0.00%↑ has announced the appointment of Mariam Sorond as its CEO. Sorond will also join NextNav’s board of directors. Ganesh Pattabiraman, NextNav’s co-founder and former CEO, stepped down to spend more time with his family, the company said. NextNav said Pattabiraman will remain as a senior advisor to the company for two years.
Contact: NextNav, www.nextnav.com.
BeWhere Gets 7,000-Unit Asset Tracker Order
BeWhere said it has received orders for more than 7,000 of its 5G asset trackers, platform and integration services. The customer, an unnamed “Fortune 100 shipping and logistics company,” will receive the company’s BeTen+ for non-powered assets, said Brian Boychuk, BeWhere senior vice president of sales and marketing. BeTen+ has been enhanced to include indoor location technology, tamper-proof sensors, increased tolerance for extreme weather conditions and an IP69K enclosure for extreme weather conditions, the company said.
Contact: Margaux Berry, BeWhere, (844) 229-4373 ext. 107, info@bewhere.com, www.bewhere.com.
Polestar Partners With Luminar and Mobileye
Polestar PSNY 0.00%↑ is working with Luminar LAZR 0.00%↑ and Mobileye MBLY 0.00%↑ on autonomous driving by integrating Luminar’s lidar technology with Mobileye's Chauffeur platform. Announced in August, Polestar 4 is planned to be the first production car to feature Mobileye Chauffeur, now with Luminar lidar, which builds upon the camera-based SuperVision platform available in Polestar 4, the company said.
With Mobileye Chauffeur, Polestar 4 is set to feature three Mobileye EyeQ6 processors, a front-facing lidar from Luminar, and Mobileye’s imaging radar to provide a layer of sensing and artificial intelligence needed to enable eyes-off, hands-off driving, the company said.
Contact: Milin Mehta, press@luminartech.com, www.luminartech.com.
Bad Elf and Point One Navigation Extend Partnership; Point One Expands Polaris Network in Great Britain
Bad Elf and Point One Navigation have extended their partnership to provide GNSS corrections services with the Bad Elf Flex Mini Extreme. As one of the first GNSS receiver partners to incorporate the Polaris GNSS corrections network, Bad Elf, which was one of the first receiver manufacturers to incorporate Point One’s Polaris GNSS corrections network, offers a subscription service for RTK corrections throughout the United States and parts of Europe.
Point One also announced that its Polaris GNSS network is now available in all of Great Britain. Ordnance Survey’s base stations are not part of the network, the company said.
Contact: Larry Fox, Bad Elf, larry@bad-elf.com, www.bad-elf.com; Mark Shapiro, for Point One, (619) 249-7742, mshapiro@srs-techpr.com, www.pointonenav.com.
Swift Navigation and Emlid Partner for Surveying and Mapping Solution
Swift Navigation has partnered with Emlid on a high precision surveying and mapping solution for site surveys, allow utility companies to locate buried infrastructure and research institutes mapping archaeological sites. When combined with Swift’s Skylark Precise Positioning Service, Emlid’s Reach RX delivers centimeter-level accuracy, the company said.
Reach RX pairs via Bluetooth to any smartphone, instantly routing its high precision location to all running mobile apps, such as GeoAce from ITS Geo, another member of Swift’s Partner Program, the company said.
Contact: Swift Navigation, www.swiftnav.com.
ABI Research Names Top Video Telematics Companies
In its Commercial Video Telematics competitive ranking report, ABI Research has ranked the top video telematics companies: Geotab, Lytx, Samsara, Solera, and PowerFleet. Top implementation scores went to Lytx, Samsara, Solera, and Verizon Connect due to their organizational health, ecosystem partnerships, and product portfolios, ABI said. "Geotab's Marketplace includes over 25 video telematics solutions, including 5 of the top 10 global video telematics solutions,” said Adhish Luitel, ABI’s senior analyst, supply chain management and logistics.
Contact: Deborah Petrara, (516) 624-2558, pr@abiresearch.com, www.abiresearch.com.
Škoda Uses Parkopedia Pay to Fuel Service
Škoda is expanding its digital services to include Pay to Fuel in collaboration with Parkopedia. Škoda, which also uses Parkopedia’s Pay to Park service, says the new service allows drivers to refuel quicker in six European countries.
The stations supporting Pay to Fuel are listed in the in-car navigation. After choosing one of these, the vehicle automatically recognises the fuel station upon arrival, the company said.
Contact: Parkopedia, www.parkopedia.com.
Everfield Acquires Visioglobe
Everfield has acquired French software company Visioglobe SAS. Visioglobe, which specializes in indoor mapping and wayfinding solutions, is Everfield’s third company acquisition in six months. Visioglobe’s core product, VisioMapEditor, allows users to create, edit, and publish indoor maps, including in 3D, the company said.
Contact: Christoph Möller, for Everfield, 49 221 / 80 10 87 87, cm@moeller-pr.de.
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Hexagon’s Immersal Partners With Burst
Hexagon’s Immersal unit has partnered with Burst for location-based augmented reality (AR) experiences for the conference, concert and event audiences market. Immersal offers a Visual Positioning System (VPS) that allows users to interact with navigation, gaming, retail and other applications. Burst works with A-list artists in creating immersive, gamified experiences, the company said.
Contact: Matias Koski, Immersal, 852 539 656 87, matias.koski@immersal.com, www.immersal.com.
STMicroelectronics Releases Microcontroller
STMicroelectronics STM 0.00%↑ has released a new microcontroller (MCU) that combines wireless-device design with its STM32 architecture. Power-saving features enable the extension of battery life in the new wireless MCUs beyond 15 years, the company said.
ST says the MCUs are valuable in such remotely deployed applications including metering and monitoring devices and data from alarm systems, actuators, and sensors. The latest integrated chip is ST’s STM32WL3, which is suitable for long-range communication using license-free frequency bands reserved globally for industrial, scientific, and medical (ISM) applications, the company said.
Contact: Michael Markowitz, STMicroelectronics, (781) 591-0354,
michael.markowitz@st.com, www.st.com.
KORE Wireless and BWS IoT announce South American Partnership
Tracking company BWS IoT and KORE Wireless KORE 0.00%↑ have partnered to sell trackers in South America. The deal allows BWS IoT to provide its tracking technology to KORE. In addition, KORE will equip BWS IoT tracking devices with its SIM cards.
Contact: KORE Wireless, www.korewireless.com.
Dabeeo Launches Tourist Map in Hawaii
Dabeeo has partnered with Hawaii Tourism Korea to provide optimized QR.here tourism digital map services to tourists. Visitors can access, through Hawaii Tourism Korea, Dabeeo's QR.here digital map on their mobile devices.
Dabeeo has integrated its 3D technology for five popular spots, including Ala Moana Center, Royal Hawaiian Center, International Market Place and Diamond Head. The company uses AI technology to generate and manage spatial information through Dabeeo STUDIO MAPS.
Contact: Jason Park, Dabeeo, jason.park@dabeeo.com, www.dabeeo.com.
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People
NASA has promoted Jim Free to associate administrator. Predecessor Bob Cabana is retiring.
Kevin Mulvihill has been named the Department of Defense Deputy Chief Information Officer for Command, Control and Communications.
Muhammad Afzal has been promoted to senior manager, strategic marketing and business development at STMicroelectronics.
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Customer Experience & Program Specialist. Taoglas.
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