Car hacking is worse than carjacking

Hackers can control a car in motion and force it to accelerate or stop suddenly. They can change the radio station, turn off the engine and change the temperature setting inside

The danger of carjacking was bad enough, but now drivers have to worry about car hacking, too. Cyber security for cars is becoming as important as for other connected devices we use. 

The global automotive industry has added another name to its critical components list. Car makers have been struggling to meet demand because of a shortage of this critical component: semiconductors. 

Until recently, semiconductors were useful in the manufacturing plants of automakers. The use of the Internet of Things in the manufacturing value chain depended on computer chips, but until recently, semi-conductors were not critical components in vehicles. Now a significant number of vehicles in the market have a semiconductor embedded in them.

Cars can soon be called mobile devices with wheels. Many in-car passenger facilities and engine management systems depend on computer chips. Some of the uses include infotainment systems, collision avoidance systems and even parking assist systems.

Touchscreens on the dashboard and rear seats; speed management, route navigation and such systems require the on-board computers in cars to process millions of lines of code every second. Electric vehicles are even more dependent on computer semiconductors for battery management. And there is voice-assistance software that can help drivers talk their way out of traffic jams. 

Self-driving cars may be some years away, but several such features of autonomous vehicles require computer chips. It’s not surprising that the shortage of semiconductors halted vehicle assembly lines across the world recently. 

Computer chips make driving and vehicle management more efficient, but they also expose the “mobile on wheels” to the dangers of cyber thievery. Car hacking can be as dangerous as carjacking. 

“The global automotive cybersecurity market size is projected to grow from USD 1.9 billion in 2020 to USD 4.0 billion by 2025, at a CAGR of 16.5%,” says a report by research firm MarketsandMarkets. “Increased use of electronics per vehicle and a growing number of connected cars, and reinforcement of mandates by regulatory bodies for vehicle data protection are some of the key factors that will drive the market for the automotive cybersecurity market.”

So, what can car hacking do? In one experiment researchers were able to control various parts of a vehicle using a laptop placed 15 kilometres away. The hackers could change the radio station, turn off the engine and change the temperature setting inside the car. In another example, a hacker based in Australia could hack into an electric car in northern England and steal its data. 

Hackers can control a car in motion and force it to accelerate or stop suddenly. A fleet of freight trucks can be hijacked or controlled remotely, too. Modern freight trucks depend much on connected electronics. 

The biggest companies in the automotive world are silently terrified of the potential catastrophe that a carjacker can unleash. This is not just about the car companies alone. Any of the OEM vendors and suppliers that develop software or hardware for vehicles can be compromised. Car hacking can be worse than carjacking, since millions can be impacted in a single attack. So, watch out. The person who can control your car may not be anywhere near you.