On one hand we are seeing some great movement in the automobile industry thanks to technology, and on other we have to worry about car hacking that has become a reality.
The truth is that almost all electronic items that connect to a network can be hacked, and now with cars being smart, they are also prone to being hacked and the concern is real.
As automobile manufacturers and suppliers are progressing in protecting vehicles from malevolent cyber attacks, the car-hacking threat remains real and can become increasingly serious in the future as we get ready to welcome self driving vehicles.
In a possible worst-case scenario, hackers may infiltrate a vehicle using a minor gadget, like an infotainment system. This could wreak havoc as the hacker would be able to control the vehicle remotely, even having access to the car’s engine, brakes, door locks etc.
Similar scenario was proven to be possible in a 2015 remote hacking display, which involved a Jeep Cherokee. The incident shook the industry and caused Fiat Chrysler Automobiles to send software patches to the owners of almost 1.4 million vehicles.
These scenarios are now also being depicted in movies like The Fate of The Furious.
According to Joe Fabbre, director at Platform Solutions at Green Hills Software, Hollywood might be sensationalising the concept, but this is not unachievable.
According to Joe’s understanding it is very much possible to hack cars, if not today then in the future, unless we come with better security.
Car makers have already started to create security patches to safeguard against potential hazards, but we wonder if that is enough.
Automobile manufacturers are also becoming more receptive to tips about hacking coming from expert researchers, mechanics and engineers.
Cars in near future will be able to communicate with each other, by means like the Cellular-Vehicle-to-Everything V2X system introduced by Qualcomm Technologies.
This technology is expected to hit the road in 2020, and if we are not able to find a solution to car hacking by then, we might be in some serious trouble.
