Monday, May 17, 2010

BBC reports: Short Hack attacks mounted on car control systems

BBC news report:

The computer systems used to control modern cars are very vulnerable to attack, say experts. An investigation by security researchers found the systems to be "fragile" and easily subverted. The researchers showed how to kill a car engine remotely, turn off the brakes so the car would not stop and make instruments give false readings. Despite their success, the team said it would be hard for malicious attackers to reproduce their work.


...

"Cars benefit from the fact that they are (hopefully) not connected to the internet (yet) and currently are not able to be remotely accessed," said Rik Fergson, a security analyst at Trend Micro. "So in order to carry out a successful attack you would already need to have physical access to the vehicle, as a break-in or as a mechanic, seem the two most likely scenarios."

"As cars, and everything else in life up to and including even pacemakers or fridges, become steadily more connected and externally accessible, research such as this should be taken increasingly seriously by manufacturers," he added.






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