In addition to 5G wireless networks, data centers, and financial services, other sectors and industries require alternative forms of PNT to complement and augment GPS/GNSS.
Electrical Grid
Energy sector suppliers and public utilities rely on precise timing for their operations based on the Precision Time Protocol (PTP) / IEEE-1588 standard. The oil and natural gas subsectors have PNT requirements, but the electricity subsector is the most in need of a service like STL to complement GPS/GNSS.
Most notably, electrical grids have interconnected their operations over the past several years, creating a need much like a telecom network for time synchronization to keep all the elements communicating effectively. If one element is disrupted, it has the potential to disrupt the entire system. As operators continue to network their operations, this creates a more critical risk to our energy systems.
National electrical grids are also becoming more vulnerable to hacking attacks as grid operators expand the use of phase synchronization and other smart grid techniques that rely on GPS/GNSS signals for timing. GPS manipulation could alter essential timestamps, for example, thereby causing equipment to deliver erroneous measurements regarding power frequency readings and power flow calculations that could lead to service interruptions.
STL provides trusted timing synchronization for continued reliability of generation, transmission, and distribution operations and to support other applications when GPS signals are unavailable or disrupted.
Maritime
GNSS issues caused by signal interference are a risk to seafaring vessels using GNSS for navigation, potentially causing them to delay their departures, cut short their journeys, go off route, or even run aground. However, cyberattacks aiming to mislead GNSS represent a far more significant threat.
Counterfeit signals can be difficult to detect because the signal appears to be genuine. When an illicit signal broadcast by a malign actor with nefarious intent hijacks a legitimate GNSS signal and transmits fake positioning information, ships at sea veer off course without even knowing it — potentially into dangerous waters.
Available worldwide today via low Earth orbit (LEO) satellites, Satellite Time and Location (STL) from Satelles provides an alternative to GNSS, delivering a solution for mariners’ peace of mind. As a reliable location source, Satelles can support applications that provide an early warning and direct mitigation for potentially inauthentic signals if the reported locations from STL and GPS/GNSS are no longer in agreement.
With a fully authenticated signal that is over 1,000 times more powerful than GNSS and impervious to being blocked or faked, STL delivers a strong and secure signal to every corner of the globe to keep vessels safe and provide trusted location for high-value assets.
Did you know?
Inauthentic GNSS signals are responsible for several incidents of lawlessness on the high seas. The New York Times published an article in September 2022 about ships that are faking their GNSS coordinates to evade Western sanctions on Russia. Shipping data researchers have identified hundreds of cases where a ship has transmitted fake location coordinates to carry out illegal business operations and circumvent international laws and sanctions.
Cybersecurity
Security authentication has typically been based on three factors — something you know (password, PIN), something you have (physical key, security token, access card), something you are (fingerprint, voice, iris pattern) — but a fourth factor is becoming more important and valuable: somewhere you are (proof of location).
A growing number of commercial and government applications depend on GPS to validate the location of a user attempting to access a sensitive system, resource, or physical space, but the challenge is that GPS can be easily hijacked. The powerful and fully authenticated Satellite Time and Location (STL) signal from Satelles is impervious to cyberattacks, making it far more reliable than GPS for location-based authentication.