2024-09-18 CERIAS - Exploiting Vulnerabilities in AI-Enabled UAV: Attacks and Defense Mechanisms

Recorded: 09/18/2024 CERIAS Security Seminar at Purdue University Exploiting Vulnerabilities in AI-Enabled UAV: Attacks and Defense Mechanisms
Ashok Vardhan Raja, Purdue University Northwest In recent years, UAVs have seen significant growth in both military and civilian applications,
thanks to their high mobility and advanced sensing capabilities. This expansion has been further accelerated by rapid advancements in AI algorithms
and hardware. While AI integration enhances the intelligence and efficiency of UAVs, it also introduces new security and safety concerns due to potential
vulnerabilities in the underlying AI models. These vulnerabilities can be exploited by malicious actors, leading to severe security risks and operational
failures. This talk will focus on securing the integration of AI into UAVs to ensure their resilience in adversarial environments. We will begin by analyzing
the data sensing and processing pipeline of key sensors used in AI-enabled UAV operations,identifying areas where vulnerabilities may exist. Following this,
we will explore how to develop defense mechanisms to strengthen the robustness of these AI-driven UAV systems against potential threats. AI-enabled anomaly
detection. AI-enabled anomaly detection and AI-enabled UAV infrastructure inspection will be leveraged as case studies in this talk. The talk will also cover
the use of Large Language Models to improve this integration's security.Ashok Vardhan Raja is an Assistant Professor of Cybersecurity in the department of
Computer Information Technology and Graphics for the College of Technology at Purdue University Northwest. His research is on secure integration of
Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Cyber Physical Systems (CPS)such as UAVs for robust operations. He is expanding his current work by using
Swarm of UAVs to address security issues and to other domains in the integration of AI and CPS. (Visit: www.cerias.purdue.edu)