Which statement best describes satellite spoofing?

Which statement best describes satellite spoofing?

• A. It involves transmitting encrypted signals to impersonate satellites.
• B. It involves disguising as authentic satellites by using trusted keys.
• C. It involves sending fake signals to mislead receivers into thinking they are authentic transmissions.
• D. It involves physically altering satellite orbits.

Answer: (C)

Spoofing is the act of deceiving a GNSS receiver by broadcasting counterfeit satellite signals that mimic the real transmissions, so the receiver locks onto and trusts the fake signals as if they came from genuine satellites. By carefully crafting these fake signals to resemble the authentic navigation data, an attacker can make the receiver compute an incorrect position or time. This is why describing spoofing as sending fake signals to mislead receivers into thinking they are authentic transmissions is the best fit. The other ideas don’t fit because civilian GNSS signals aren’t protected by cryptographic keys for impersonation, so using trusted keys isn’t how spoofing operates, and physically altering satellite orbits is a different kind of attack altogether.

Spoofing is the act of deceiving a GNSS receiver by broadcasting counterfeit satellite signals that mimic the real transmissions, so the receiver locks onto and trusts the fake signals as if they came from genuine satellites. By carefully crafting these fake signals to resemble the authentic navigation data, an attacker can make the receiver compute an incorrect position or time. This is why describing spoofing as sending fake signals to mislead receivers into thinking they are authentic transmissions is the best fit. The other ideas don’t fit because civilian GNSS signals aren’t protected by cryptographic keys for impersonation, so using trusted keys isn’t how spoofing operates, and physically altering satellite orbits is a different kind of attack altogether.