Tens of thousands of Dutch traffic lights vulnerable to hackers: report

Tens of thousands of Dutch traffic lights can be hacked and controlled remotely, according to research by RTL Nieuws. A leak in the system that controls the lights means that attackers can remotely switch them to green or red. The vulnerability can only be fixed by physically replacing the traffic lights. The road authorities are working on this and expect it to take until at least 2030.

Ethical hacker Alwin Peppels discovered the leak while investigating the system that connects traffic lights to emergency services. When the police, ambulance, or fire brigade respond to an emergency, traffic lights turn green to give them priority. Public transport also uses the system to get green lights faster and to report estimated arrival times.

Peppels discovered that hackers could easily change tens of thousands of Dutch traffic lights installed at thousands of Dutch intersections with the push of a button. And this can be done from several kilometers away.

“Traffic lights are part of our critical infrastructure and are a popular target for malicious parties,” Peppels told the broadcaster. “Whether it is a criminal hacker or enemy countries that are targeting our infrastructure, it is of great importance to ensure that these types of systems are well secured. We must continue to pay close attention to all the systems that we use in our infrastructure.”

Cybersecurity expert Dave Maasland is concerned. “This is a very dangerous leak that exposes a fundamental problem in our digitalized society: that many of our systems were built at a time when the digital world was not yet hostile. And now, in a time of geopolitical unrest and tension, these systems are suddenly coming to the surface. This time, it’s traffic lights. Next time, it’s a lock or a dike.”