PilotAware

British Forum => Technical Support => Topic started by: marioair on August 27, 2022, 06:25:37 am

Title: Software upgrade and ghosting
Post by: marioair on August 27, 2022, 06:25:37 am
I’ve upgraded to latest software so I can take advantage of Igrid.
On the first flight yesterday I was getting regular ghosting.
Do the upgrades mess up the hex code?
Can some look at the log file if I send to see what was going on?
Title: Re: Software upgrade and ghosting
Post by: Ian Melville on August 27, 2022, 09:08:40 am
Yes, though the updates are not supposed to, they can mess up the hex code. I would check that first.

Has happened a couple of times to me and is more likely if the pervious version is quite old.
Title: Re: Software upgrade and ghosting
Post by: marioair on August 27, 2022, 08:05:38 pm
I’ve check the logs and hex code is fine.
How can I send the log it’s 7MB.
Title: Re: Software upgrade and ghosting
Post by: Ian Melville on August 27, 2022, 09:29:53 pm
Host it somewhere like dropbox and send a link to support.
Title: Re: Software upgrade and ghosting
Post by: Admin on August 27, 2022, 11:05:07 pm
Hi Marioair
Can you explain the exact symptom ?
Bearingless or gps position ghost
Thx
Lee
Title: Re: Software upgrade and ghosting
Post by: marioair on August 28, 2022, 10:29:12 am
Here's the full track file
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1mp9Z8d6Vy_OSjAl82E22nl0PMFmGeGRB/view?usp=sharing

Varios ghost report at follow times, for example.
https://aircrew.co.uk/playback/b2c97783

Fri Aug 26 2022 14:18:50
Fri Aug 26 2022 14:22:52
Fri Aug 26 2022 14:29:02
Fri Aug 26 2022 14:42:32
and so on

Title: Re: Software upgrade and ghosting
Post by: Admin on August 29, 2022, 04:59:34 pm
Hi Marioair

you have an aircraft with HexID 393F76 following very closely

Are you emitting any other types other than PilotAware ?
are you using safesky ?

Thx
Lee
Title: Re: Software upgrade and ghosting
Post by: marioair on August 29, 2022, 05:20:30 pm
Is their a reverse lookup to get the call sign from that hex?
Title: Re: Software upgrade and ghosting
Post by: Admin on August 29, 2022, 05:38:13 pm
There is no registration I can find of that code.
Are you using any other emitters / trackers ?

Thx
Lee
Title: Re: Software upgrade and ghosting
Post by: marioair on August 29, 2022, 06:47:12 pm
Maybe my pesky passenger. Told me he had just installed SafeSky. I’ll ask what callsign he had setup.
Haven’t looked at SafeSky manuals. I assume if it’s sakeSky then the PAW was picking it up via rebroadcast.  Does SS default to a code on install / should it be emitting / should PAW be re-emitting a code that doesn’t exist?
Title: Re: Software upgrade and ghosting
Post by: Admin on August 29, 2022, 07:46:04 pm
Quote
Maybe my pesky passenger
;D

Interesting, I see you also posted on FF
Maybe worth reporting

Btw, you will receive those reports via multipath - ATOM, SkyGRID and iGRID
Another checklist item to add
- All passengers please disable cellular devices using SafeSky

Thx
Lee
Title: Re: Software upgrade and ghosting
Post by: marioair on August 29, 2022, 07:58:25 pm
I need to check if it was indeed a hex being produced by SafeSky. Will let you know.

But to the related question - if the hex doesn’t resolve to a call sign is that “normal”?
Title: Re: Software upgrade and ghosting
Post by: steveu on August 29, 2022, 08:07:33 pm
But to the related question - if the hex doesn’t resolve to a call sign is that “normal”?

Hex codes are issued for FLARM devices and they may not be in look up tables.

For collision avoidance you aren't too worried about the exact type of aircraft, just not hitting them when you get a very close proximity alert...
Title: Re: Software upgrade and ghosting
Post by: marioair on August 29, 2022, 08:15:10 pm
Yeah. But (I need to confirm with my friend) but he uses his SakeSky in a PA28. The code @Lee as mentioned is NOT his code. So stuck as to is this a SafeSky issue or PaW issue.
How do you check in SS what code is being transmitted?
Title: Re: Software upgrade and ghosting
Post by: steveu on August 29, 2022, 09:20:44 pm
Yeah. But (I need to confirm with my friend) but he uses his SakeSky in a PA28. The code @Lee as mentioned is NOT his code. So stuck as to is this a SafeSky issue or PaW issue.
How do you check in SS what code is being transmitted?

Ask SafeSky:

https://forum.safesky.app/t/transponder/729 (https://forum.safesky.app/t/transponder/729)

Bottom of that thread:

For information, there is also another mean of filling your transponder ID when you don’t know it: simply toggle ON that you have a transponder, and leave the transponder code text field empty. When in flight, SafeSky will auto-detect that a ‘ghost’ plane is following you (since you will be seeing yourself from ADS-B as well). You will then get prompted with a question: « is this you? ». If so, your transponder code will be automatically filled and you won’t have a double echo of yourself.

Fly Safe,

Tristan


Tristan is one of their main men...
Title: Re: Software upgrade and ghosting
Post by: marioair on August 29, 2022, 09:24:29 pm
So SS uses hex code as well. I’ll ask my friend but I’m pretty sure he’ll have put in his own planes hex, which is NOT what Lee has flagged as my ghost in PAW log.
Title: Re: Software upgrade and ghosting
Post by: marioair on August 30, 2022, 01:32:59 pm
i've confirmed that my passengers SafeSKY WAS setup correctly with the correct hexcode for my aircraft. So not sure what this random hex code is. interestinlgy SafeSky have said:

Quote
393F76 is not registered in SafeSky transponder list.

https://forum.safesky.app/t/ghosting-on-skydemon/784
Title: Re: Software upgrade and ghosting
Post by: marioair on August 30, 2022, 02:54:31 pm
And i also received this from SafeSky as well:

Quote
I just checked for your flight, and I can see the traffic from hex code 40651B:

from PilotAware
as MODE-S using multi-lateration
as SafeSky from the app
By design, SafeSky will show the most up-to-date and precise traffic location, regardeless of its source.

There is nothing in our logs that relates to 393F76. Could you please followup with PilotAware, and share with us their findings? Could it be that they do not de-duplicate traffic and were generating ghost alerts in PAW?

I suspect that on SafeSky, there was no alerts, since those 3 sources were you.
Title: Re: Software upgrade and ghosting
Post by: Admin on August 30, 2022, 08:19:42 pm
@marioair
could you tell your friend to turn on his safesky, I am monitoring the data feed and want to see if the ICAO address re-appears
thx
Lee
Title: Re: Software upgrade and ghosting
Post by: Admin on August 30, 2022, 08:34:21 pm
I just configured mine to emit an ICAO code of 40526F

But this is what was produced and sent to the OGN
SKY475048>OGNSKY,qAS,SafeSky:/192459h5223.53N/00127.45W'245/000/A=000239 !W42! id20475048 +000fpm gps17x6

I then changed to 444444, and it produced
SKY7F411F>OGNSKY,qAS,SafeSky:/193159h5223.53N/00127.45W'235/000/A=000239 !W31! id207F411F +000fpm gps5x3

I entered your code 40651B, and I got
SKY47CF4B>OGNSKY,qAS,SafeSky:/193338h5223.53N/00127.45W'235/000/A=000239 !W31! id2047CF4B +000fpm gps5x3

it seems safesky are scrambling the real ICAO code when sending to the OGN - that seems like a very silly thing to do for compatibility
Title: Re: Software upgrade and ghosting
Post by: marioair on August 30, 2022, 09:21:29 pm
Would you be willing for me to post that on the SS support thread I have? That’s fairly fundamental. And also I don’t understand how SS would work on its own if you’re in a plane with both SS and a transponder.  Unless it gets the transponder data via “MLAT” and also scrambles that to the same hex as SS. if the makes sense
Title: Re: Software upgrade and ghosting
Post by: Admin on August 30, 2022, 09:31:28 pm
Looks like they are illegally harvesting data and scrambling for their own purpose
Feel free to follow up
Title: Re: Software upgrade and ghosting
Post by: marioair on August 30, 2022, 09:42:22 pm
@marioair
could you tell your friend to turn on his safesky, I am monitoring the data feed and want to see if the ICAO address re-appears
thx
Lee

It was switched on between 21.29 and 21.39 U.K. local tonight using my hexcode. Let me know what you see
Title: Re: Software upgrade and ghosting
Post by: Admin on August 30, 2022, 09:59:13 pm
I dont see the same code as previously - but all the identifier codes are scrambled
Title: Re: Software upgrade and ghosting
Post by: marioair on August 30, 2022, 10:07:25 pm
Could it be this?
https://forum.safesky.app/t/call-sign-is-not-visible/747/4


Quote
SafeSky assumes you wish to remain anonymous. For callsign to show you need to go into settings bottom right. Then on next page click top right above your profile name. This now enters your profile info. Scroll down until you see Public Profile and switch this on. Now click save top right. I would then log out and log back in. You should now, and everyone else, see your call sign instead of just your aircraft symbol. Cheers
Title: Re: Software upgrade and ghosting
Post by: Admin on August 30, 2022, 10:16:26 pm
No, that just shares on their system
They are scrambling icao codes to the OGN
Title: Re: Software upgrade and ghosting
Post by: marioair on August 31, 2022, 04:38:10 pm
Quote
Thanks for copying the reply, it’s pretty clear now. Indeed, to guarantee being anonymous when needed from SafeSky to OGN, we are creating a hash of the internal id. In this specific case, since the PAW id was encoded in safesky (would be the same for an ads-b or mode-s ICAO hex), we should simply respect and pass over the entered id. That way, PAW will receive it and will be able to deduplicate the traffic naturally.

Thanks a lot for raising this point to us, we are going to take an action and fix this.

Fly safe,

Tristan
Title: Re: Software upgrade and ghosting
Post by: marioair on August 31, 2022, 04:44:01 pm
Above is update from SS.

My response to them
:

Quote
Thanks.  Is it legal to transmit false IDs?

I’m not sure what you mean by anonymous? Data transmitted on ADSB and mode S carries the proper hex code. It’s a core part of the standards. I think it’s a massive manipulation of the ecosystem if the codes of aircraft are collected from OGN and then scrambled by SS? Do OGN know you’re doing this?

If the intent is to protect the personal identity of the pilot then their ownership details with the aviation authority should be anonymous. Not the call sign. 
Title: Re: Software upgrade and ghosting
Post by: steveu on August 31, 2022, 05:07:08 pm
PMSL, very "Safe".

Scrambling ICAO codes defeats just about every type of filtering to avoid duplication. It also could lead to mistaken aircraft information.

In this case, it has led to a false alert or a ghost aircraft...
Title: Re: Software upgrade and ghosting
Post by: marioair on August 31, 2022, 05:18:44 pm
Yup. Hopefully it's a well intended but naive mistake that will be sorted out.

As an aside...i have always worried about the security of the whole ecosystem and what nefarious manipulaiton could do