DEF CON attendees suspected of spoofing Delta flight Wi-Fi

Federal authorities are investigating an incident aboard a Delta flight where passengers allegedly created a fake Wi-Fi hotspot, potentially to harvest credentials. The incident occurred on Delta flight 591 from Las Vegas to Atlanta, one day after the DEF CON cybersecurity conference concluded in Las Vegas.

According to social media accounts tracking air-to-ground messages, pilots reported that passengers from a "cyber conference" were able to jam the plane's Wi-Fi and broadcast their own signal. A Reddit post further described the passengers creating a fake hotspot named "Delta WiFi Fast" with a phishing landing page designed to capture personal credentials, a technique known as an "evil twin" attack.

Delta confirmed that an unauthorized Wi-Fi network was present on the aircraft for a short period, but stated that flight safety was never compromised and no aircraft operating systems were affected. The flight's onboard Wi-Fi was disabled for 30 minutes. The FBI Atlanta bureau confirmed it is aware of the reports and is investigating the matter, but stated that no arrests have been made.