SkyJack
A drone that autonomously seeks, hacks, and takes over other drones.
SkyJack is a drone built by Samy Kamkar that hunts for other Parrot drones and takes control of them over their wireless connection, allowing the pilot of SkyJack to operate the hijacked drone and see through its camera. The Parrot AR.Drone, a quadcopter made by the French company Parrot, is normally controlled by a mobile device running iOS or Android, but it uses no authentication or encryption to secure that link. Kamkar released the full plans for SkyJack—both hardware and software—as open source on December 2, 2013, and explained the project on his website. The system uses a Parrot AR.Drone 2, a Raspberry Pi, a USB battery, an Alfa AWUS036H wireless transmitter, and software including aircrack-ng, node-ar-drone, node.js, and Kamkar's own SkyJack code. It flies around, detects other Parrot drones by their unique identifier without needing any prior information about them, and then forces the original owner's wireless connection to drop using a deauthentication attack. After that, it authenticates with the target drone as if it were the owner, granting full control and camera access to the SkyJack pilot.
- Creator
- Samy Kamkar
- Release date
- December 2, 2013
- Type
- Unmanned aerial vehicle
- Target drone
- Parrot AR.Drone 2
- Hardware components
- Parrot AR.Drone 2, Raspberry Pi, USB battery, Alfa AWUS036H wireless transmitter
- Software components
- aircrack-ng, node-ar-drone, node.js, SkyJack software
Lore & Background
SkyJack was engineered to autonomously seek out, hack, and wirelessly take over other drones within wifi distance, creating an army of zombie drones under the pilot's control. The project uses a Parrot AR.Drone 2 as the base platform, augmented with a Raspberry Pi, a USB battery, and an Alfa AWUS036H wireless transmitter. The software stack includes aircrack-ng, node-ar-drone, node.js, and the custom SkyJack software.
The SkyJack software seeks out other Parrot drones wirelessly by their organizationally unique identifier without requiring any previous knowledge of the targeted drones. The Parrot AR.Drone, designed to be controlled by mobile or tablet operating systems such as iOS or Android, uses no authentication or encryption to secure the connection with the pilot. SkyJack exploits this by using aircrack-ng to perform a deauthentication attack against the pilot, exploiting a mechanism in wireless security. After disconnecting the true owner, SkyJack authenticates with the target drone pretending to be its owner, then feeds commands to it and all other possessed zombie drones at will.
Reader's Guide
SkyJack's significance lies in its demonstration of the vulnerability of consumer drones that lack basic wireless security measures. The Parrot AR.Drone, which uses no authentication or encryption for its control connection, is particularly susceptible. By releasing SkyJack as open source, Samy Kamkar provided a proof-of-concept that any drone within wifi distance could be hijacked without prior knowledge of the target. The deauthentication attack, performed using aircrack-ng, exploits a standard wireless security mechanism to forcibly disconnect the legitimate pilot, after which SkyJack assumes control and gains full access to the drone's camera feeds. This project highlighted the security shortcomings in early consumer quadcopters and served as a catalyst for discussions about drone security and the need for encrypted, authenticated control links. Its legacy includes influencing later security research and raising awareness among manufacturers about the importance of securing wireless connections in unmanned aerial vehicles.
Did You Know?
- SkyJack was created by Samy Kamkar and released as open source on December 2, 2013.
- It uses a deauthentication attack via aircrack-ng to disconnect the original pilot of a target Parrot drone.
- The Parrot AR.Drone uses no authentication or encryption to secure its control connection.
- SkyJack can take over any Parrot drone within wifi distance without prior knowledge of the target.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is SkyJack?
SkyJack is a drone project that autonomously searches for nearby Parrot AR.Drone 2 quadcopters and seizes control of them through their unencrypted wireless link, letting the operator pilot the hijacked aircraft and view its camera feed.
Who built SkyJack?
Samy Kamkar designed and built SkyJack, documenting the full project on his personal website.
How does SkyJack hijack a target drone?
The system exploits the fact that Parrot's AR.Drone 2 transmits its control channel without any authentication or encryption, so SkyJack's wireless transmitter can intercept that link and issue its own commands to the target.
What hardware goes into a SkyJack build?
The airframe is a Parrot AR.Drone 2 paired with a Raspberry Pi, a USB battery pack, and an Alfa AWUS036H wireless transmitter that handles the rogue signal.
When was SkyJack made publicly available?
Kamkar published the complete hardware and software designs as open-source on December 2, 2013, including the node.js-based control stack and aircrack-ng for signal capture.
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