Notes

Eva Air USB Ports

I just got off an Eva Air flight which had in-seat USB ports not only for power but also for data. I found that when I plugged in USB keys, it could navigate through FAT32 and NTFS memory sticks which makes me think that the in-flight entertainment system was based off of an embedded Windows OS. Several of the games in the system also had multiplayer modes which would mean that there must be some LAN within the plane and since the plane’s audio announcement system could pipe audio through the seatback system, that must be connected as well.

Although I doubt the Boeing 777’s designers would also link up flight-critical systems like avionics, there is something to be said about the possibilities arising from putting some sufficiently determined hacker on a plane with Wi-Fi, an electrical socket, physical access to a Windows-backed USB port, and twelve-plus hours of boredom.

From the Eva Air Website:

In-seat USB Port

If you are traveling on our selected B777-300ER (Royal Laurel Class) and A330-300 aircrafts (Premium Laurel Class), you can navigate through PDF files, photos and other multimedia content stored in your storage devices (iPod, USB flash drive**, AV connector-enabled device, etc.) on your seat-back screen. Instructions are shown on the screen once connected.