Electronic Warfare Puts Commercial GPS Users on Notice
Summary
Localized jamming and spoofing of GNSS (including GPS) are rising worldwide, hitting aviation, maritime shipping, transport, agriculture and other commercial sectors. Incidents have increased from roughly 700 daily in 2024 to more than 1,000 daily in 2025. Russia is a prominent source of interference documented in Europe, and the UN aviation assembly has formally condemned such actions. GNSS disruption also stems from natural causes such as solar activity, and criminals increasingly exploit jamming and spoofing for cargo theft and supply-chain fraud. Experts and industry groups are urging governments to invest in alternative PNT (positioning, navigation and timing) technologies and hardening measures.
Key Points
- GNSS interference (jamming and spoofing) has surged to over 1,000 daily incidents in 2025, up from ~700 in 2024.
- Russia has been a prominent source; the UN civil aviation body condemned widespread GNSS interference affecting flights.
- Impacts go beyond aviation and shipping: agriculture (GPS-guided tractors), transport fleets, ATMs and financial services all rely on GNSS timing/location.
- Solar activity can also cause widespread outages; a May 2024 event showed large agricultural exposure.
- Cheap GNSS jammers make the threat accessible to more actors, including criminal groups who use disruption to enable cargo theft and fraud.
- Industry groups and regulators (GPS Innovation Alliance, FCC) are calling for R&D and investment in alternative PNT systems and hardening measures.
- Proposed mitigations include chip-scale gyroscopes, laser-based systems and diversified PNT architectures to reduce single-point dependence on GPS.
Context and Relevance
Modern industries depend heavily on GNSS for both location and precise timing; disruption threatens safety, economy and national security. The article links tactical electronic-warfare activity in conflict zones to real commercial impacts thousands of miles away — from unfarmable fields in Finland to disrupted flight navigation — and highlights how criminals weaponise the same techniques. The piece sets out why governments and private operators are under pressure to fund alternative PNT research and to harden existing systems against jamming and spoofing.
Why should I read this?
Short version: this is not just military drama — it hits anything that needs accurate position or timing. If you run fleets, farms, shipping, payments infrastructure or critical comms, this affects you. Read it to know the trends, the real-world examples and what governments and industry are proposing so you can start planning mitigations.
Author
Robert Lemos — veteran technology journalist with 20+ years covering security and engineering topics.