Irag and Afghan Insurgents Hacking into Drones' Video footage

The remotely piloted aircraft has become a key weapon in the fights in Afghanistan and Iraq. It costs millions of dollars apiece, and with the help of cheap software, insurgents can intercept the live video feeds from the drones.

Using software programs such as Skygrabber, which costs $26 and copies are widely available for free online, insurgents can exploit a security hole in the system to get a look at exactly what U.S. personnel are seeing.

Most of the hacking discoveries have been in Iraq, but officials have found evidence that it is going on in Afghanistan as well. Although it doesn't seem like militants can actually take control of the drones, just being able to take a look at what they are recording could be of tremendous help to escape the watchful eye of the United States.

American officials have known about this vulnerability for years, but they didn't think enemies would know how to take advantage of it. There's been some attempt at encryption, but it's no easy proposition and could hurt the ability to act on the information quickly.

Now the United States is getting ready to spend as much as $4.5 billion to buy new-generation drones that have the same vulnerability.