A Solution to the Problem of hacking Into Cars!

Not so funny thing is, in the computer world, we rely upon discovery of virus’ or identification of vulnerabilities proactively and by the good guys and antivirus software, but think about the car thief.  The car thief isn’t wildly propagating a computer virus, they are specifically targeting a vehicle to be taken (and not left for the owner to discover said virus and report it).  So vulnerabilities that thief networks use for exploitation of these car systems will not necessarily be found or publicized.

Interesting challenges ahead, and some behavioral changes necessary for things such as Infotainment System Updates having to be “maintained” just like other integral components of a car.

Another thought, since North America is going Smart Card Credit Card, is to revamp the traditional Key or Key Fob for access to a vehicle with a Smart Card embedded token of some sort that requires a PIN code to unlock the on token authorization to start the vehicle (and continue to provide authentication real time until removed).  Like IT (and because cars are increasingly being integrated with Information Systems), you really need 2-factor security to ensure all systems are safe.  Single factor security such as a Key or Fob meets the “Something I have” criteria, but not the “Something I know” (such as a PIN) or “Something I am” (such as biometrics).  Keys and or Fobs are easy to take and use (or not even have to use in the case of this video), but having a key plus a PIN code to access any system in the car would easily prevent attacks such as these.

From my son-in-law, Tony.


To learn more about the anti-theft technology, see my book: