Why Cybersecurity is Essential in the Automotive Industry

Cybersecurity is now a priority for automotive OEMs and other stakeholders, due to which the industry must address the pain points related to security.

FREMONT, CA: A system becomes vulnerable to cyber-attack the minute it is connected to a network. Based on the security of the network, the exploit may or may not be successful.

The security issue has become real for automobiles now that they have accepted the digital bandwagon. A connected car, for example, is similar to a computer network with exposed interfaces like steering, braking, and other essential information about the occupants. If cybercriminals gain access to the car, they can mess with the systems or steal critical data.

This may seem far-fetched, yet similar incidents have occurred in the past to support such assertions. In addition, some researchers have carried out similar cyber-attacks on infotainment and other systems to expose their vulnerability to cyber-attacks.

Automotive OEMs and other stakeholders in the automotive value chain are aware of the dangers. The establishment of a cybersecurity standard is also assisting in integrating cybersecurity into the software and hardware development lifecycle.

Automotive Innovations and Cybersecurity: Understanding the Threat

The automotive industry has been evolving at an unprecedented rate, with software driving most of it. And companies have already discussed how every line of code in the software makes it more vulnerable. Let's look at the cyber threat that these advancements pose:

Connected Cars: 

Automobiles are gradually developing into connected devices that communicate through Bluetooth and Wi-Fi. Vehicle-to-infrastructure, vehicle-to-vehicle, vehicle-to-cloud, and vehicle-to-everything technologies render the automobile vulnerable to cyber-attacks. Once the hackers gain access to the vehicle-to-cloud network, they may compromise the complete fleet of vehicles connected to the cloud.

Highly Autonomous Vehicles: 

Autonomous vehicles used to seem like something out of a science fiction novel. In the last few years, OEMs have recorded millions of miles on the road with autonomous vehicles. These vehicles depend on a stream of data from the infrastructure around them, such as GPS and traffic data and the sensors installed in the car. Any flaw in the system could result in a deadly accident.

Electric Vehicles: 

An EV's cybersecurity is no different than that of a vehicle with an IC engine. When cybersecurity is discussed in the context of electric vehicles, an additional vulnerability in the shape of an electric vehicle charging station is included. A cyber-attack on charging infrastructure could result in significant repercussions such as fire and power outages.

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