You get in your car to head to work one morning only to find a message saying that your vehicle’s systems have been locked, and they won’t be released until you send $100 in bitcoins to an untraceable account. Now imagine that the same thing happens to the hundreds of thousands of owners of a particular line of vehicle. This scenario may seem farfetched, like the beginning of a science fiction movie. However, in reality, this scene is a variation on ransomware, a form of cyber attack that is estimated to affect 600,000 computer systems each year. There have yet to be any reported ransomware attacks on vehicles, but with the current and future state of vehicle cybersecurity, the question is when and not if cyber attacks will occur.
Vehicle technology is advancing at a rapid pace, with fully automated driving the ultimate goal. As a result, the vehicles of today and tomorrow in many ways are more P.C. than Model-T. The sensors, data connections and software that will ultimately revolutionize driving also create cyber-vulnerabilities that present unique safety and privacy concerns not previously experienced in the automotive industry.
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