Today’s cars are computers on wheels. Many contain more than one connected device, allowing drivers and passengers to stream entertainment, make phone calls, or access safety features. The more sophisticated vehicles out there (Teslas and the like) enable cars to connect to the internet for regular software updates.
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While such connections bring a lot of benefits, especially when it comes to safety, they can also introduce new cybersecurity risks. A dramatic demonstration in 2015 revealed that hackers could remotely control an automobile; they could perform a number of actions, including killing the engine.
That’s clearly cause for alarm, so car manufacturers have been including encryption as one of their cybersecurity strategies. However, an emerging technology is threatening that encryption, which means carmakers will need to pivot again to keep their vehicles safe.
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Comments
Enhanced kill switch
What if a driver simply could turn off all external communication unless the car is safely parked in one's own driveway? That might be soon enough for key updates, and the home system is probably superior anyway for news and email. Yes, a car in motion would miss out on real-time alerts about road conditions and certain safety information, some which could go to a cellphone instead of car CPU, but the driver who turns off external vulnerabilities might be content with increased safety of vital onboard components and, as in today's driving, simply getting from one place to another.
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