“The bug resembles an integer overflow and was discovered in laboratory testing. It is located in an electrical system which generates power, and is triggered when a generator has been running non-stop for just over eight months. After such a period of continuous operation, all four of the plane’s main generator control units will fail at the same time – which could be catastrophic should it occur during a flight”

The software bug was reported by Boeing itself and is currently under investigation by the US aviation authority, a temporary solution being already discovered. In order to avoid becoming a victim of the vulnerability that exists in their software, planes have to be rebooted every 248 days so that the generators don’t reach eight continuous months of operation.

The FAA now requires Boeing to reboot the 787s every 120 days while waiting for an official fix to address the software vulnerability by the end of the year.

The recently discovered bug shows one again how many software vulnerabilities can cause irreparable damage, especially when they might also be exploited by criminals. How safe would you want globally used software to be, when your life depended on it?

Read more about the security vulnerability in Boeing 787: http://www.itnews.com.au/News/403500,critical-software-bug-could-down-boeing-787s-mid-flight.aspx#ixzz3ZANjtbvE

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