According to latest research, a hacker can control your steering wheel or suddenly slam on the brakes at 80 miles per hour. Or they can disable your braking system at slow speeds. No matter how hard you step on the brake the car will not stop. In other cases, they can accelerate your car when driving at slow speeds.
In their demonstration, they used a laptop computer while sitting in the automobile. They did not research remote hacking because another group had already done so. However, that group is unwilling to publish their findings. It is rumored they used Bluetooth systems and wireless networks in 2011 to break into a vehicle’s computer system.
Sounds like James Bond, doesn’t it?
Already we are bombarded with notifications about purchasing antivirus software for our computers. Now we should be on the lookout for the same software to protect our automobiles.
This news sets up a theme for World War III. The new mercenary will be the hacker, who is frequently teased and called a nerd, living at home with his parents and sitting in his bedroom orchestrating an attack. They will be able to immobilize an entire nation by controlling vehicles. At worst, they could take the lives of many by causing accidents on highways and city streets.
While this possibility seems far-fetched or too distant in the future, technology and software vulnerabilities make it a reality. If you have On Star, it may be wise to check with them to see if they are taking measures to ensure their system can protect you. They are already set up to control your vehicle through a wireless system.
On another front, there are hackers who have figured out how to override the door locks on luxury cars like Bentleys, Porsches, Audis and Lamborghinis. The researchers were planning to present their findings at a technology trade show. Except, Volkswagen obtained a restraining order from the British high court to prohibit the researchers from presenting their findings.
For now, we may safely ride and park our automobiles. Moving forward, we will have to take precautions that have never been considered. On the other hand, it would seem those who drive the old classic cars from the days when computers were not used could be immune to this threat. But it did not just end there. Surprisingly, they found that the number of ways to access private information in the vehicle was parallel to the amount of hacking that could be done online, in a more traditional computer sense of the word, “hack”.
First off, instead of targeting a single car in particular, these hackers might threaten a large group of cars. By monitoring the location of several most valuable ones that make it sufficing to go through all this risk, hackers are able to sell unlocked cars to robbers and thieves. This means they can secretly track cars using GPS coordinates and VIN numbers and then plan to carjack at their leisure and in terms of demand.
Secondly, once a car has a compromised GPS tracking information, its movements can be easily watched and tracked down. Anything you see in movies may be done, since devices that makes it easy to eavesdrop on in-car conversations are so easy with the advance of portable technology. The hacker could also learn about the car owner’s daily lifestyle and exact routines. Even scarier, they will be able to find where the car owner lives.
You may not know this, but hackers can penetrate virtually any phone and access mass amounts of data. This means they can track your car down simply because you have a cell phone in the car. Later they may be able to use the cell phone as a trigger device that disengages the brakes or something even worse. Yes, we’re on the same page, something like blow your car up. Although only very professional hackers will be able to do this, it’s not entirely too impossible Remote exploitation of cell phone devices.
To be clear, although these fiascos don’t happen all too often, the thought is definitely scary because it could happen in the future. To calm your nerves there are a number of ways you can protect yourself. For example, making sure you have a comprehensive car insurance policy that will insure you against theft, replacing your car, car keys, protecting valuables in your car, and other safety measures. Consider installing alarm devices and systems, and get your car checked regularly.
