A new hi-tech railway signalling system being tested in the United Kingdom could potentially be hacked by cyber criminals to cause oncoming trains to crash into one another at high speeds, Prof David Stupples has warned. His warning comes at a time when the United Kingdom is looking to replace its ageing and old signalling system and is looking to test the European Rail Traffic Management System (ERTMS). Internet security expert Professor David Stupple told the BBC that plans to replace old railway signal lights with new digital systems could expose the railway network to cyber attack, Prof Stupples believes a hack can cause a “nasty accident” or “major disruption”accident” to involving terrorists and cyber criminals as they could “easily expose the new mainframe.” Commenting on the issue, Piers Wilson, Product Manager of Huntsman Security said that; BBC has reported that rail operator, Network Rail, which is in charge of the upgrade has acknowledged the threat. “We know that the risk [of a cyber-attack] will increase as we continue to roll out digital technology across the network,” the Network Rail spokesman told the BBC. The ERTMS which is currently in testing phase will replace the old and ageing signalling system in UK’s busy intercity routes by 2020. Once set up, the ERTMS will control complete rail networking including the speed of trains and their braking times. The ERTMS is already in use in some parts of Europe and there are no reports of it being hacked or taken over by terrorist thus far. Professor Stupples, who is an expert in networked electronic and radio systems at City University in London, however is not so sure.“It’s the clever malware that actually alters the way the train will respond,” he explained. “So, it will perhaps tell the system the train is slowing down, when it’s speeding up.”
