Kaspersky has warned the owners and riders of all connected and autonomous cars that the said transport mediums are extremely vulnerable to cyber attacks. The researchers from the Russian Security Firm have come to the conclusion after carrying out a research on remotely controlled cars manufactured by automobile manufacturers like Toyota.
Note 1– Connected Cars are those which are connected to servers via the internet and are part of IoT. These cars have the ability to communicate with each other and share data among themselves. Hence, the data sharing concept can help in avoiding traffic jams, accidents and can help to ease the journey of the car occupants on an overall note.
Note 2- Autonomous cars are driverless cars which operate on their own by sensing the environment and navigating without any human inputs. These cars also rely on central servers and GPS systems.
It was discovered in the research that the applications loaded onto the connected cars contain a number of loopholes when it comes to security. These security flaws can potentially allow hackers to cause extreme damage to the owners of connected cars.
According to Google Play Statistics, Kaspersky Lab tested almost seven remote car control applications developed by major car manufacturers. The researchers found that the apps which were examined contained several security issues.
Thus, hackers can use these exploits and can gain control over the car, unlock the doors, turn off the security alarm, and then steal the vehicle. They can also launch some serious attacks such as hijacking the vehicle or changing its drive course.
Victor Chebyshev, the security expert at Kaspersky Lab said that in the current state, the applications related to connected cars are not in a condition to withstand malware attacks. He added that car manufacturers should start thinking about building and relying on apps which are smart, sophisticated and futuristic on an overall note.
In order to avoid troubles, the users of connected cars are being advised to follow the below measures-
1.) Do not root your android device to the car as it can spell more trouble.
2.) Do not download apps from any third party websites
3.) Keep the OS version up to date
4.) Install a reliable security solution to protect data theft
NOTE-The research on connected cars and their vulnerability to malware was presented at RSA Security Conference on February 16, 2017, with the title “Hey Android, where’s my car?”
